HC Deb 11 May 1951 vol 487 cc271-2W
Major Beamish

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what representations he has made to the International Refugee Organisation for payments from its special fund for the benefit of non-German and non-Jewish refugees.

Mr. Younger

I assume that the special fund referred to is that allocated, under the terms of Article VIII of the Final Act of the Paris Conference on Reparations, to victims of the Nazirégime. His Majesty's Government have informed the International Refugee Organisation that in their opinion the terms of the agreement under which this fund is administered can be interpreted in such a way as to benefit non-German and non-Jewish refugees. The bulk of the funds available has, however, now been allocated.

Major Beamish

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he will make a statement about arrangements for the resettlement of those refugees for whom the International Refugee Organisation has responsibility, after that organisation has been closed down.

Mr. Younger

It is expected that by the time the International Refugee Organisation closes down there will remain on the books of that Organisation very few refugees capable of resettlement abroad and not already absorbed into the economies of the countries where they now live. Good progress has been made in solving the problem of the so-called "hard core" and it is anticipated that the residue of some 10,000 institutional cases will be dealt with by the end of the current year, either by resettlement schemes abroad or by arrangements made locally.

After the Organisation closes down, Governments and private organisations will still be able to arrange for the repatriation or emigration of persons formerly on the books of the I.R.O. who may desire or be capable of such movement.

The principal functions of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, who was appointed by a decision of the United Nations General Assembly last autumn, will, be to provide legal protection and advice, and he will not be responsible, as the International Refugee Organisation has been, for resettlement. He will however advise and assist States and private organisations in their activities relating to repatriation and resettlement.