§ Angela SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects Kosovar Albanians who came to the United Kingdom under the Humanitarian Evacuation Programme to return to Kosovo. [91007]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienKosovar Albanians who came to the United Kingdom under the Humanitarian Evacuation Programme (HEP) were granted leave to enter in line with close family members already settled in the United Kingdom or granted exceptional leave to enter for 12 months to provide them with temporary shelter as requested by the United Nations Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary, in his announcement about the change of policy to the HEP and the consideration of asylum applications from citizens of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) on 15 June, stated that no Kosovar Albanian would have their stay curtailed nor would they be required to leave the United Kingdom until it was safe to do so.
It is our intention to facilitate the return of any Kosovar Albanians who wish to return to Kosovo as soon as possible. In co-operation with voluntary organisations in the refugee sector, the British Red Cross, UNHCR and the International Organisation for Migration, we will be providing a voluntary return programme. We expect the first flight to take place in the week commencing 19 July. For those without passports, the necessary travel documentation will be provided for those on the return programme. The programme will be available to those FRY citizens from Kosovo who arrived on the HEP as well as those who arrived in the United Kingdom independently.