*On this date in 1962, The Commonwealth Immigrants Act 1962 went into effect.
This was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was a pushback against the Windrush generation and non-white colonial citizens of Britain. Before the Act was passed, citizens of Commonwealth countries had extensive rights to migrate to the UK. There was widespread opposition to immigration in Britain from various political groups, including the Conservative Monday Club, whose Members of Parliament were very active and vocal in their opposition to mass immigration.
The Act specified that all Commonwealth citizens, including citizens of the UK and Colonies (CUKCs), without a relevant connection to the UK were subject to immigration control. Commonwealth citizens who were born in the UK or held a passport issued by the UK government in the UK or Ireland, CUKCs holding a passport issued by the UK Government (not including colonial governments) anywhere, and family members included in their passports were immune from control. Exemptions were applied to Commonwealth citizens who were ordinarily residents of the UK from 1960 to 1962, as well as wives and children under 16 accompanying a family member who was a resident of the United Kingdom.
