§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what are the numbers of extra staff required by the immigration and nationality department to clear the backlog of immigration and nationality cases by 31 December.
§ Mr. RentonThe information requested is not readily available. Efforts to reduce the backlog by improved efficiency and streamlining caseworking procedures continue. The backlog of nationality registration applications is planned to be cleared during January 1990, and of naturalisation applications by 31 March 1991.
§ Mr. VazTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the current backlog of immigration applications in terms of(a) the total number of cases, (b) the number in each category and (c) the average length of time it takes to deal with a case in each category.
§ Mr. RentonAt the end of September 1989, there were 27,600 cases outstanding in the immigration caseworking groups and 10,000 active cases in the refugee and special cases unit. Information by category on the number of cases622W currently outstanding is not readily available, but marriage and student cases are thought to account for the greater part of the backlog. The estimated average length of time to deal with applications in the main variation of leave categories in the third quarter of 1989 is given in the table:
Estimated average length of time between the receipt of an application and the decision, for variation of leave cases1 2 decided in the third quarter of 1989, for the main categories of applications 1989 Third Quarter Category of application Months Student 3½ Work permit holder 1½ Settlement grant 2½ Limited leave prior to settlement as a spouse 4 Visitor 2 1 Includes cases decided in the Public Enquiry Offices as well as in the caseworking groups 2 Excludes EC nationals