Seventh Australian senator referred to High Court as citizenship crisis deepens

MELBOURNE: A crisis engulfing Australia’s parliament has widened after a key independent senator became the seventh parliamentarian referred to the High Court to determine if his dual citizenship makes him ineligible to sit in parliament.

Senator Nick Xenophon’s announcement yesterday that he holds dual British citizenship comes as the future of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s government hangs in the balance, with question marks surrounding the eligibility of key members of his government and crossbenchers threatening supply should it be stripped of its one-seat majority.

That majority was placed in jeopardy earlier this week after Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said he may be ineligible for parliament due to New Zealand citizenship by descent.

His father was born in New Zealand. Joyce has since relinquished New Zealand citizenship, but is awaiting the High Court ruling, along with several other politicians who believe they may have dual citizenship.

The citizenship crisis, based on a 116-year-old law which demands an elected lawmaker only have Australian citizenship, has rocked the Australian parliament, ensnaring three government members, three Green party MPs and Xenophon.

Xenophon said yesterday he had received advice overnight from the UK Home Office that, due to a ‘rare peculiarity’, they considered him a British overseas citizen.

The senator, who was born in Adelaide, Australia, said his father, Theodoros Xenophou, was born in Cyprus and left there in 1951. Cyprus remained a British colony until 1960 when it gained independence. — Reuters