§ Mr. Nicholas BennettTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Turkish Kurds have been granted asylum in 1989.
§ Mr. RentonWe do not keep separate statistics of the ethnic origins of asylum seekers but the great majority of the Turkish nationals who have sought asylum here are of Kurdish origin. Seventy-one Turkish nationals have been granted refugee status so far in 1989, and a further 243 have been granted exceptional leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom. Decisions have yet to be reached on the majority of the 3,500 applications for asylum made by Turkish nationals who arrived in May and June.