First citizenship date set

The first "citizenship ceremony" - in which immigrants will sing the national anthem under the Union Flag and take an oath of allegiance to the Queen - will be held later this month, says the Home Office.

Anyone applying for British citizenship after January 1 this year will have to take part in one of the ceremonies which will be held in front of local dignitaries in town halls and elsewhere around the UK.

The first one will be held in Brent, London on February 26.

The 90,000 adult applicants who win a British passport each year will pay a fee of £68 for the compulsory ceremony.

Work has also started on a citizenship handbook which will offer information on issues such as British law and how to get help and information.

The Home Office also said today that classes in English for would-be citizens will be piloted over the coming year.

In September last year an advisory panel chaired by Professor Sir Bernard Crick recommended that would-be citizens be given free language lessons.

But ministers say the cost would be "very high" and cannot be committed to ahead of next year's Spending Review.

The pilot schemes will be used to see if there are other ways to recoup the cost of lessons for the thousands of people seeking citizenship.

They will try to make use of existing course space with Local Education Authorities and employers.

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