British Prime Minister Gordon Brown suffered a rare parliamentary defeat on Wednesday when lawmakers voted to overturn new rules that restrict the number of former Nepalese Gurkha soldiers who can settle in Britain.
Parliament’s lower house backed a motion from the opposition Liberal Democrat party that would give all Gurkha veterans equal rights to stay in Britain by 267 votes to 246.
In a statement to the house on Wednesday evening, Immigration Minister Phil Woolas said the government would bring forward the date determining the outstanding applications of Gurkha soldiers to settle in Britain to the end of next month.
He said the government would put forward proposals for the next stage of reform to the rules before the summer recess.
Although the vote was not legally binding, the defeat was a blow for Brown, who trails the opposition Conservatives before an election due by June next year.
His Labour Party has fallen as much as 18 points behind the Conservatives after weeks of headlines about the ailing economy, a row over lawmakers’ expenses and the resignation of a key Brown aide.
With a working majority of 63, Labour has lost only a handful of votes in the lower house since taking power in 1997.
After the result was announced, there were raucous cheers and shouts of “resign” to ministers from opposition lawmakers.
Brown told parliament that allowing all Gurkha veterans to resettle in Britain would cost £1.4 billion (US$2.07 billion).
“We have to work this in stages by balancing the need for the Gurkhas to receive recognition for everything that they have done with the finances that are available,” Brown said.
The settlement issue for the soldiers, who have fought for Britain since 1815 and still go into battle with traditional curved Kukri knives, has raged for years. Gurkhas say if they were good enough to fight for Britain, they are good enough to be allowed to stay.
The government, however, fears that some 100,000 former soldiers and their families would apply to settle in Britain if they removed all restrictions.
The government issued its latest settlement guidelines last year after a senior judge said the existing rules were unlawful.
The new rules allow Gurkhas who retired before 1997 to settle in Britain if they meet one of five criteria, including having 20 or more years’ service or a gallantry medal.
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