§ Mr. Parkerasked the Minister of Labour the total number of immigrants to this country, including former prisoners of war remaining here, for each year from 1945 to 1949, giving the principle countries of origin.
§ Mr. EdeI have been asked to reply. The numbers of aliens admitted for residence in the years 1945 to 1949 on compassionate grounds, as European Volunteer Workers, and in certain other circumstances (e.g., marriage to British subjects) are as follow:
1945 37 1946 5,869 1947 44,965 1948 46,286 1949 3,700 Total 100,857 The principal nationalities included in this figure of 100,857 were Poles (29,040), Latvians (13,793), Yugoslavs (9,400), Germans (9,312), Ukrainians (8,238), Lithuanians (6,594) and Estonians (5,444). In addition, 121,172 former members of the Polish Armed Forces and their dependants remain in the United Kingdom. Some of these entered this country before 1945, but the bulk of them came in 1946 and 1947. Approximately 15,000 German, 8,000 Ukrainian and 1,000 Italian former prisoners of war have also been allowed to remain in the United Kingdom.
During the years 1946 to 1949 the Ministry of Labour and National Service issued about 101,000 permits to aliens to come to the United Kingdom for temporary employment. Some of the holders of these permits may remain in the United Kingdom, but the great majority have returned or will return to their own countries.