§ Mr. DarlingTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how long a person applying for entry clearance on 31 March or the latest convenient date at each post in the Indian subcontinent could expect to wait, in each queue, for(a) first interview, (b) referral of the case to the Home Office and the requested information being received by the post, (c) decision after first interview, and (d) the explanatory statement prepared by the post in the case of appeal against any refusal to be despatched to the immigration appellate authorities in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. Eggar(a) The waiting times as at 31 October were given in another reply to the hon. Member today.
(b) and (c) This information is not available. Processing times vary considerably from case to case.
(d) Average despatch times of explanatory statements from receipt of the appeal are:
Post Settlement Non-settlement New Delhi 10-12 weeks 8-10 weeks Bombay 5½ months 4í months Calcutta 6 weeks 6 weeks Madras 4 weeks 4 weeks Islamabad 5 months 2-3 months Karachi 1 month 1 month The information for Dhaka is not yet available. I will write to the hon. Member when it is received.
§ Mr. DarlingTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how long a person applying 147W for entry clearance for settlement at the British post in (a) Manila, (b) Accra, (c) Lagos, (d) Kingston, (e) Nicosia and (f) Cairo on 31 March or the latest convenient date could expect to wait for (i) interview, (ii) referral of the case to the Home Office and the requested information being received by the post, (iii) decisions and (iv) an explanatory statement prepared by the post in the event of an appeal against a refusal to be dispatched to the immigration appellate authorities in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. EggarThe information sought at (ii) and (iii) is not available. Processing times vary from case to case.
As to (i) and (iv) the position as at 16 December was as follows:
(i) (iv) Manila 10 weeks within one month Accra Normally same day 1— Lagos Normally same day 1— Kingston Normally same day 1— Either immediately Nicosia or within one week none pending Cairo same day maximum three weeks 1 This information is not yet available. I will write to the hon. Member when it is received.