§ Mr. Bestasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) when he decided that the close family members of refugees should be admitted under the policy governing immigrants rather than the policy of the final act of the conference that adopted the 1951 convention relating to the status of refugees;
(2) what criteria he took into account when changing the policy of admission of close family members of refugees;
(3) whether the oppression suffered by close family members of refugees settled in the United Kingdom when they were in their country of origin is taken into account when determining whether such close family members should be admitted to the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. RaisonThe final act of the conference that adopted the 1951 convention relating to the status of refugees recommended that Governments took the necessary measures for the protection of the refugee's family, especially with a view to ensuring that the unity of the refugee's family is maintained, particularly in cases where the head of the family has fulfilled the necessary conditions for admission to a particular country. The United Kingdom has adhered to this recommendation since accession to the convention and has allowed the entry of the spouse and minor children of refugees already here and looked sympathetically at applications from other relatives particularly aged parents.