HC Deb 25 March 1983 vol 39 c499W
Dr. Edmund Marshall

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many Vietnamese refugees are currently in Hong Kong.

Mr. Rifkind

On 23 March 1983 there were 12,395 Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong.

Mr. Skeet

asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will co-ordinate a European response to the problems of Vietnamese refugees in order to ensure an equal distribution of refugees between European states.

Mr. Rifkind

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees is normally responsible for the resettlement of Vietnamese refugees. He takes into account a number of factors including the preferences of the refugees, historical and cultural ties and language, and family connections as well as the readiness of recipient countries to admit refugees for resettlement. Their distribution throughout Europe is therefore unlikely to be equal though, as stated in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Hazel Grove (Mr. Arnold) on 21 March—[Vol. 39, c.345]—there have been significant and welcome contributions by many countries to the sharing of this international responsibility.

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