§ Mr. GILBERTasked the Home Secretary whether there has been any increase in the number of aliens into this country during the present year; and can he give the comparative figures for the first five months of this year and last year, giving the country of origin from which the aliens came?
§ Mr. SHORTTThe hon. Member will find the fullest available information in the Returns which have been presented to Parliament every quarter since the beginning of 1920, showing the numbers of aliens who landed or embarked in the United Kingdom in each month. I would refer him to the Return for the first quarter of the present year, but in comparing this with the corresponding Return for 1920 it must be borne in mind that the figures for 1920 are swollen by the inclusion of transmigrants who are excluded from the Returns for 1921.