HC Deb 15 February 1999 vol 325 cc597-8
13. Dr. Norman A. Godman (Greenock and Inverclyde)

What steps he is taking to speed up the asylum appeals system. [69117]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mr. Mike O'Brien)

The Immigration Asylum Bill will introduce reforms to the appeal system to reduce opportunity for frivolous appeals. Our target is to have appeals processed within four months.

Dr. Godman

My compliments to the Minister for that answer. Is he aware that, in Scotland, fully 30 per cent. of all cases involving immigration appellants are handled by the Scottish Refugee Council, a charitable body that receives no public funding for that legal work? What steps will he take to ensure that such appellants receive legal representation in the courts or will he suggest that this might be a matter for the Scottish Parliament?

Mr. O'Brien

It may or may not be, but we want to ensure that, where possible, those who need legal representation are legally represented. The Refugee Council in England and Wales receives some public funding. It will be a matter for others in due course to review the position of the Scottish Refugee Council. We need to ensure that the legal aid system and the grants issued under section 23 of the Immigration Act 1971, which are given by the Home Office, can respond to the demands on them. We are examining that to ensure that, as far as possible, they can.

Miss Julie Kirkbride (Bromsgrove)

In answer to the hon. Member for Harrow, East (Mr. McNulty), the Minister said that 8,000 would-be asylum seekers had been found in the backs of lorries. Can he confirm that they have all been deported after being found illegally entering the United Kingdom? If not, how many have been deported?

Mr. O'Brien

I suspect that, under the system that we inherited and under which we still operate, very few have been deported. We inherited substantial backlogs. It takes years to process asylum cases. The aim of our change to the immigration and asylum system is not only to introduce effective civil penalties to stop people bringing in illegal immigrants in the first place but to ensure that the system processes cases quickly so that we can remove those who need to be removed, unlike what happened under the previous Government.