HC Deb 23 March 1983 vol 39 cc419-20W
Mr. Best

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Vietnamese refugees who came to the United Kingdom as unaccompanied minors for permanent settlement, for whose parents or other close relatives application has been made to come to the United Kingdom, have been joined by relatives; and how many are still unaccompanied.

Mr. Waddington

Records are not kept in such a form as to enable us to say how many of the Vietnamese refugees who came to the United Kingdom as unaccompanied minors have since been joined by relative s and how many have not.

The Joint Committee for Refugees from Vietnam has, however, supported applications for the entry of 288 relatives of 48 such refugees and I hope to be able to reply to the committee in the near future.

Mr. Best

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Vietnamese persons who have been granted permission to come to the United Kingdom are awaiting entry.

Mr. Waddington

About 3,000 Vietnamese who have been offered refuge in the United Kingdom have not yet arrived here. It is not possible to say how many of this total are awaiting entry as the circumstances of some may have changed and they may, for example, have been resettled in a third country.

Mr. Best

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Vietnamese persons, presently in Vietnam, have been granted permission to come to the United Kingdom but are awaiting exit permits from the Vietnamese authorities.

Mr. Waddington

Two thousand, five hundred and forty-four applications for Vietnamese in Vietnam to join close relatives settled in the United Kingdom have been approved. One thousand, six hundred and three have been issued with visa promise letters, but it is not possible to say that all are awaiting exit permits as some may have decided not to leave Vietnam and some may have gone elsewhere.