§ 22. Mr. GibbTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy not to extend the asylum seekers' identity cards to the population as a whole. [21126]
§ Angela EagleThe Government have no plans to extend to the population as a whole the Application Registration Card which will shortly be issued to asylum seekers.
§ 31. Mr. RobathanTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress he has made on his targets for the(a) deportation and (b) removal of failed asylum seekers and illegal immigrants. [21135]
§ Angela EagleThe current Service Delivery Agreement target relating to the removal of failed asylum seekers from the United Kingdom is to remove 30,000 in 2001–02; 33,000 in 2003–04; and 37,000 in 2003–04. The totals include dependants.
The 30,000 target for this year has always been ambitious and high risk. To enable us to reach and exceed 30,000 removals a year by 2003, we need to remove about 2,500 people a month. It remains our aim to achieve this monthly total by March 2002.
Published figures are not yet available for non asylum removals but there have been 5,330 asylum removals from April to September including 570 dependants.
§ 35. Mr. GoodmanTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many failed asylum applicants have been removed from the country in the last 12 months. [21139]
§ Angela EagleThere have been 5,330 asylum removals1 from April to September including 570 dependants2.
Information on the number of asylum removals is published on a quarterly basis. The next set of data will be published on 28 February 2002 on the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website http: //www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration 1.html.
1 Provisional figures, rounded to the nearest five. Figures may not sum due to rounding. Removals includes persons departing 'voluntarily' after enforcement action has been initiated against them and persons leaving under Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes run by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).2 Data on dependants of asylum seekers removed have only been collected since April 2001.
§ Mr. PatersonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he has granted permission to the Angel Development Corporation to house asylum seekers at the Centrex site at High Ercall, Shropshire; [19747]
(2) what discussions he has had with the Angel Development Corporation about the future of the Centrex site at High Ercall, Shropshire; [19749]
(3) if a feasibility study has been carried out on the suitability of the Centrex site at High Ercall, Shropshire, for the housing of asylum seekers; [19748]
(4) what the Government's intentions are with respect to the Centrex site, at High Ercall, Shropshire. [19746]
79W
§ Angela Eagle[holding answer 4 December 2001]: The Angel Group is under contract to the National Asylum Support Service to provide accommodation for asylum seekers. Any discussions that have taken place have related to the services provided under that contract.
My officials are currently looking at a number of potential sites for use as accommodation centres but no decisions have yet been made on individual sites to be used.
§ Mr. PatersonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many places are being sought to accommodate asylum seekers around the country; and how many have so far been filled; [19743]
(2) what conditions must be fulfilled before permission is granted to those organising sites for the accommodation of asylum seekers; [19744]
(3) what the planned maximum number of asylum seekers is for each centre accommodating them in remote rural areas of the United Kingdom. [19745]
§ Angela Eagle[holding answer 4 December 2001]: It is intended to establish a number of accommodation centres for asylum seekers, with a total capacity of 3,000, in order to trial the new approach set out in the Home Secretary's statement of 29 October. No decisions have yet been made about the location of the centres.
In 2002 the Home Office will run competitions for the development and operation of sites to be used as accommodation centres for asylum seekers. The criteria for the award of any contracts that might result from the competitions have yet to be determined.
No maximum capacity for individual accommodation centres has been set. The capacity of individual sites will depend on a number of issues, including the availability of existing accommodation and the availability of land for development.
§ Dr. TongeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his Department's policy is towards asylum seekers from Zimbabwe in spring 2002. [22474]
§ Angela Eagle[holding answer 12 December 2001]: All asylum claims made by Zimbabwean nationals are considered under the terms of the 1951 United Nations convention relating to the status of refugees. The Home Office, in conjunction with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, closely monitors the situation in Zimbabwe. A country assessment on Zimbabwe is produced by the Home Office and published on the Immigration and Nationality Directorate's website. The assessment was revised in October 2001 and will be revised again in April 2002, taking into account the latest situation in Zimbabwe, particularly the presidential election that is due to be held there by April 2002.
§ Julie MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department to what locations the asylum seekers who left Cardiff prison last month were dispersed. [22184]
§ Angela EagleDuring the week commencing 12 November the remaining 20 immigration detainees held at Her Majesty's Prison Cardiff were transferred to Immigration Service detention facilities: 18 were transferred to Harmondsworth Detention Centre and two were transferred to Campsfield House Detention Centre.
80W