Australian senators must prove they are not dual nationals
CANBERRA, Australia — All Australian senators have three weeks to prove they were not foreign nationals when elected under an agreement the major political parties reached Monday to resolve a deepening citizenship crisis that could upend the government.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s conservative coalition could lose two seats at byelections next month after government lawmaker John Alexander on Saturday resigned from Parliament because he had likely inherited British citizenship from his English-born father.
Australia is rare if not unique in the world in banning dual nationals from sitting in Parliament. Pressure is growing to reform the 116-year-old constitution amid the growing uncertainty over how many byelections might result from the current crisis and which party might end up forming government.
Turnbull’s conservative Liberal Party and the centre-left opposition Labor Party agreed to set a Dec. 1 deadline for senators to provide documented evidence that they are solely Australian citizens. Australian-born lawmakers will have to provide details of their parents and grandparents’ dates and countries of birth to demonstrate that they have not inherited a second nationality. Immigrant lawmakers must document steps they have taken to renounce their original nationalities.