Shamima Begum – how ministers removed her citizenship

The parents of Shamima Begum have been informed that their daughter has been deprived of British citizenship. Begum turned up in a refugee camp in Syria earlier this month. She left Bethnal Green aged 15 in February 2015 and married a Dutch-born ISIS fighter. Two of her children are reported to have died, and a third was born several days ago. She says she now wants to come back to the UK.

Home Secretary Sajid Javid has deemed her a security risk, and began the legal process of making her no longer a British citizen.

Already, on social media, astonishment is being expressed at this move. How can a British citizen have their citizenship removed?

The answer is that ministers have plenty of scope to do this, and have been doing so quietly for some time. In 2017, 104 individuals linked to ISIS, Al Qaeda and other groups were deprived of their citizenship.

The Home Office guidelines are quite clear on how it is done:

“Under s.40 of the 1981 Act, as amended by the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 from 1 April 2003 and by the Immigration, Asylum and Nationality Act 2006 from 16 June 2006, any British citizen, British overseas territories citizen, British Overseas citizen, British National (Overseas), British protected person or British subject may, by Order, be deprived of his or her citizenship or status if the Home Secretary is satisfied that: 

a. it would be conducive to the public good to deprive the person of his or her British nationality, and that s/he would not become stateless as a result of the deprivation (ss.40(2) and (4)).”

Conduciveness to the public good is defined as meaning “in the public interest on the grounds of involvement in terrorism, espionage, serious organised crime, war crimes or unacceptable behaviours.”

Fraud or false representation are also grounds for deprivation.

The controversy in this case will rest on the definition of statelessness. Is she stateless? Begum swore allegiance to Islamic State, which has just been wiped off the map – although its followers are still very much a threat. Do she and her child now become Syrian? She is of Bangladeshi heritage, does she have citizenship of Bangladesh? Or can she apply for a Dutch passport on her husband’s ticket? She says she wants to be reunited with the dreadful fellow. The Netherlands is famously liberal.

Begum and her parents can appeal the Home Office decision, and no doubt there will be leading lawyers determined to assist. Begum was only 15 when she left. She was brainwashed and abused, say those who think she should be allowed back.

Public opinion on such questions tends to be robust, and the tough line of ministers is likely to be highly popular. ISIS-inspired plots are still being disrupted in Britain and it is a constant battle for the security and intelligence authorities.

Begum has said in the interviews from Syria – The Times found her first – that she didn’t know what she was getting into. What she was getting into was a death cult that by the time she joined had already screened beheading videos and sworn to enslave unbelievers. Yet off she went, in search of excitement. Now she finds herself deprived of the British citizenship she so casually discarded. Many Britons will conclude that she should have thought about this at the time.