§ 10. Mr. SykesTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for asylum in 1991 were found to be multiple applications submitted by individuals using false names.
§ Mr. Charles WardleSeparate figures for refusal of multiple applications are not identifiable, but in the past 12 months more than 12,000 applications have been refused because of failure to provide information or to attend interviews. We believe that there is a correlation with multiple applications.
§ Mr. SykesDoes my hon. Friend agree with those of us in Scarborough and Whitby who want the Asylum and Immigration Appeals Bill to be enacted as soon as possible and regard bogus applications with the same contempt as we regard opponents of the Bill?
§ Mr. WardleMy hon. Friend is right, for two reasons: first, fraudulent applications clog the system and delay the genuine applications of refugees who have experienced harrowing problems; secondly, they are an abuse of the social security system.
§ Mr. Campbell-SavoursWas not the Minister's treatment of my constituent's family and their Yugoslavian friend last night a slur on the credibility of the Government and a disgrace to his name as Minister? Having deported that girl from Manchester airport at 6 am today, will the Minister confirm that she had lived in Switzerland for three years, that she had a return ticket to Switzerland dated 21 December, that she had £700 in her pocket, that she had credit cards from Swiss banks, that she had a full-time job in Switzerland with an employer who had given assurances that she would stay in Switzerland—[Interruption.]
§ Madam SpeakerOrder. The hon. Gentleman is somewhat abusing Question Time. Perhaps he will now come to his point.
§ Mr. Campbell-SavoursShe was also due to return to Switzerland to be married next January. Does the Minister regret the disgraceful decision that he took last night, or is this the new form of barbaric Conservatism that we have to experience?
§ Mr. WardleI have written to the hon. Gentleman, who gave the House a long list of circumstances. I do not normally comment on a case, but he omitted to mention that the lady concerned told immigration officers that she was aware that former Yugoslavs needed a visa to come to this country but said that she understood that it was required only of ethnic Serbs. The refusal was mandatory. Had the case not been treated as it was—[Interruption.]
§ Madam SpeakerOrder. The Minister's response must be heard in the House.
§ Mr. WardleHad the case not been treated in that fashion, it would have been an abuse of the change in the rules which imposed a visa regime on the citizens of the former Yugoslavia.
§ Mr. John GreenwayWill my hon. Friend take the oportunity to confirm that the Government remain totally committed to their obligations to asylum seekers under the 1951 United Nations convention, and that any person throughout the world who has a genuine fear of persecution is welcome here? Does my hon. Friend agree that the Asylum and Immigration Appeals Bill now before the House of Lords will strengthen the rights of the genuine asylum seeker at the expense only of those who seek to break the rules?
§ Mr. WardleMy hon. Friend is right: the Government are absolutely committed to the 1951 convention. The Asylum and Immigration Appeals Bill will be an improvement on the existing system, and will provide an oral hearing for every refused asylum applicant.
§ 11. Mr. CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the training of interpreters used in asylum applications.
§ Mr. Charles WardleAt present no formal training is provided for interpreters. The immigration and nationality department is currently undertaking an internal review of the provision of interpreter services, including the question of training.
§ Mr. CorbynWill the Minister undertake to review all the complaints that have been received about the quality of translation provided for people arriving in this country and seeking political asylum? Is he aware that mistakes are often made because interpreters speak the wrong dialect or have insufficient training, or because people seeking political asylum have no confidence that the interpreters will maintain the important confidentiality of the interview? Will the Minister ensure that proper training is given and that there will be a proper examination of all the procedures? Otherwise, there is a grave danger that legitimate asylum seekers will be debarred from achieving refugee status in this country due to lack of proper translation services at the ports of entry.
§ Mr. WardleThe hon. Gentleman makes an important point about dialects. As he knows, the immigration and nationality department takes the matter seriously. At the 405 end of an interview, an account of it is read to the interviewee, who is asked whether he or she agrees the account.
I refer the hon. Gentleman to page 6 of the annual report of the immigration and nationality department, which says that the total number of complaints received is about 400. Some of those will involve interpreters.