§ Colonel Wedgwoodasked the Home Secretary whether he will inquire into the refusal of a visa to Ursula Carola Erber, of Charlottenburgh, a transmigrant to the United States of America whose maintenance and travelling expenses have been guaranteed in this country, unless£100 is first deposited in cash with the application for a visa, because she is between 16 and 18 years of age and comes under the head neither of child nor adult; and further, will he see that all transmigrants 16 to 18 years of age come under the same rule as transmigratory adults, who require only guarantees and not cash deposits?
§ Sir S. HoareI have no information about the case to which the right hon. Member refers, but I shall be glad to look into it if he will send me further particulars. The nature of the financial guarantee required for a refugee's maintenance while in this country pending emigration is a matter to be determined by the voluntary refugee organisation concerned.
§ Colonel Wedgwoodasked the Home Secretary whether he is aware that the age limit for refugee domestics is 18 to 45; and, in view of the special need for getting out of Germany and the demand for domestics here, will he change the age limits to 15 to 45?
§ Sir S. HoareIt has recently been arranged that girls of 16 may be admitted to take employment as domestic servants, provided they are placed in households where there are trained domestic servants, so that they can receive proper training.
§ Colonel Wedgwoodasked the Home Secretary whether he has received from Lord Gorell's Committee dealing with child refugees any representation as to the desirability of ending the present obligation to re-emigrate children and young trainees, which is hindering the present scheme by a financial liability which few, however charitable, will undertake?
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§ Sir S. HoareI have received no such representations from the committee.
§ Colonel Wedgwoodasked the Home Secretary concerning the re-emigration of child refugees and the present immediate demand made for£50 or£100 from prospective foster parents for the cost of re-emigration; whether he will see fit to stop this demand in the case of foster parents who undertake to have the children trained after the age of 18 as nurses or for domestice service in this country?
§ Sir S. HoareI would refer the right hon. Member to the reply which I gave to a question by the hon. Member for the Forest of Dean (Mr. Price) on 6th April. The general understanding on which these child refugees are admitted to this country is that they should be educated and trained with a view to eventual emigration and not permitted to stay here to engage in employment.
§ Colonel Wedgwoodasked the Home Secretary whether he will state the present rules concerning the issue of visas to German refugees coming to this country as agricultural and industrial trainees; and whether the same rules apply to those between 16 and 18 and those over 18 years of age, in view of the fact that those between 16 and 18 years of age can no longer come in as children?
§ Sir S. HoareIn cases of refugees recommended by the voluntary refugee organisations for admission to this country for training purposes with a view to eventual emigration, the same facilities are afforded to refugees between the ages of 16 and 18 as to those over 18 years of age.
§ Colonel Wedgwoodasked the Home Secretary whether he is aware that many refugee girls, often earning£1 a week in domestic service, are anxious to save their parents, anxious to support them here instead of in Germany, willing to give a guarantee out of the wages countersigned by their employers, and that visas are refused in all such cases to the loss of this country in man-power and in the money sent out at present to feed their parents; and will he give instructions that some such guarantees be accepted in future?
§ Sir S. HoareThe question whether a refugee's maintenance here is assured is192W a matter for the investigation of the voluntary refugee organisation concerned. For this purpose I understand the organisations take into account any money which would be available for the parents' support from the daughter's earnings; but they cannot regard a girl earning 1 a week as in a position on her earnings alone to ensure her parents' maintenance in this country.
§ Colonel Wedgwoodasked the Home Secretary whether he is aware that, in the case of transmigrants to the United States of America, applications for visas to this country have to be supported by photo stat copies of the American affidavit, but such affidavits are sent direct to the United States' Consuls, and great delay is caused before the American guarantor sends copies at the request of the visa applicant; and will he therefore accept as adequate evidence a letter from the United States' Consul announcing the receipt of the affidavit?
§ Sir S. HoareBefore facilities can be afforded for refugees to proceed to the United Kingdom temporarily with a view to emigration to the United States of America, it is necessary to be satisfied that their eventual entry to that country is reasonably assured. The voluntary refugee organisations who accept responsibility for the refugee's emigration must, in order to satisfy themselves in this respect, examine the affidavit, as it is only from the particulars therein that they are able to form an opinion as to the possibilities of emigration.
§ Mr. W. R. Duckworthasked the Home Secretary whether he will state the circumstances under which refugees are arriving at Croydon and being refused admission; and what action is taken with regard to carrying companies which bring over aliens without proper credentials?
§ Sir S. HoareI would refer the hon. Member to my reply of the 6th April to the hon. Member for Aberdeen, East (Mr. Boothby) which explains the position with regard to the Czech refugees who arrived at Croydon. As I explained then, in view of the recent visa requirement in respect of holders of Czech passports it is unlikely that any similar cases will recur. Under the Aliens Order carrying companies are responsible for the removal of any alien to whom leave to land is refused, and consequently they take pre- 193W cautions before accepting passengers, but there are exceptional cases where the carrying company is not in a position to know in advance whether a particular foreigner will be given leave to land.
Captain Shawasked the Home Secretary what representations he has received from the managers of the Lord Baldwin Fund for refugees or others in respect of the call for a£50 guarantee for re-emigration expenses in respect of each child brought into this country after the 28th February, 1939; and will he give an assurance that the conditions under which children of German nationality have been admitted into this country will be strictly enforced?
§ Sir S. HoareI have received no such representations.