§ Mr. Fabian HamiltonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the British Government's policy towards asylum seekers who have been active in opposition parties and are from the English speaking regions of Cameroon. [44930]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienEvery application for asylum is decided in accordance with the provisions of the 1951 United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. Anyone who demonstrates a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion would be 643W recognised as a refugee. Any rejected applicant has the opportunity to appeal to the Immigration Appellate Authority.
The Government's assessment of the conditions prevailing in Cameroon is based on information from a variety of sources, including the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the United States Department of State and international organisations, such as Amnesty International. A country assessment on Cameroon, prepared by the Country Information and Policy Unit of the Immigration and Nationality Directorate, has been produced and will be revised and updated approximately every six months.
The Home Office country assessment reports concerns about human rights abuses in Cameroon. At this time we have received no evidence to show that mere membership of an opposition party or a Cameroonian's status as an anglophone would single a person out for persecution for those reasons alone.
§ Sir Norman FowlerTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the estimated total cost to public funds in the last 12 months of making provision for applicants for political asylum. [45182]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienCosts directly attributable to asylum seekers are not separately identified within spending figures, hence only a broad estimate is available. This estimates that the costs to public funds of provision for asylum seekers is around £500 million for 1997–98. This cost includes processing costs of asylum applications and appeals, and costs for providing support to asylum seekers via Department of Social Security benefits, support provided by local authorities under the National Assistance Act 1948, legal aid and health and education.
Recent claims that the total cost of asylum is in excess of £2 billion are wildly misleading.