One Nation Senator Malcolm Roberts says he received confirmation of his renunciation of British citizenship in December 5, 2016, months after last year’s federal election.
However, the Queensland senator insists he took all reasonable steps to renounce with the British consulate in the months prior to receiving the formal reply.
Senator Roberts has been under increasing pressure to release documents of his renunciation after fresh reports surfaced claiming he had travelled under a British passport as a child and was listed on a registry of British nationals born overseas.
It comes as Nationals Senator Matt Canavan became the latest politician to become embroiled in the dual nationality fiasco engulfing federal parliament, after the resignations of Greens deputy leaders Scott Ludlam and Larissa Waters.
Section 44 of the Constitution forbids parliamentarians from being dual citizens.
The One Nation senator has insisted he’s neither a citizen of the UK nor India, where he was born.
But on Thursday night he detailed the timeline of events leading up to the receipt of the British citizenship renunciation letter to Sky News.
He said he sent three emails to the British consulate asking if he was a British citizen from May 1, 2016.
He wrote again on June 6, saying he believed he was not a British citizen but formally renounced it, “if it existed”.
He finally received the confirmation from British officials on December 5.
The federal election was held on July 2, 2016.
Senator Roberts said he finally got the reply “after a lot of badgering”.
“I’ve taken all steps that I reasonably believe necessary,” he said.
A previous High Court decision around Section 44 found that a parliamentarian must have taken “all reasonable steps” to renounce their other citizenship.
The Australian Electoral Commission also advises candidates they will be “disqualified from election to parliament if they do not take “all reasonable steps” to renounce their other citizenship before nomination.”
Labor Senator Sam Dastyari said sending emails to renounce wasn't enough:
Senator Roberts says he’s confident of his case withstanding a challenge, based on legal advice.
“I only ever thought I was an Australian citizen, that’s all I believed, that I am an Australian citizen only,” he said.
