§ Mr. ColemanTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum applications were received from(a) Serbia and (b) Colombia in 1998; and how many of the applications (i) were agreed, (ii) were refused and (iii) await decision; and if he will make a statement. [88835]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienThe available information is given in the table. I regret that it is not possible, without involving disproportionate cost, to separately identify Serbians within the statistics held on nationals of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.
Applications1 received for asylum in the United Kingdom, excluding dependants, and initial decisions 2.3 for nationals of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and Columbia, 1998 Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Columbia Applications received 7,395 1,360 Total decisions of which: 1,570 425 Recognised as a refugee and granted asylum 935 20 Not recognised as a refugee but granted exceptional leave 75 25 Refused asylum and exceptional leave 565 380 Applications outstanding at end of year4 7,700 2,260 1 Provisional figures rounded to the nearest 5 2 Information is of initial determination decisions, excluding the outcome of appeals or other subsequent decisions 3 Decision figures do not necessarily relate to applications made in 1998 4 Estimated figures