§ Mr. MaddenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when papers were referred to him concerning an entry clearance application made by Mrs. Robina Kausar at the post in Islamabad; when it was discovered these papers had been lost and a duplicate referral requested from the post; when Mrs. Kausar's husband in the United Kingdom was interviewed; when a decision is to be taken on this application made at Islamabad on 24 August 1987; when he received the copy of a letter from the hon. Member for Bristol, West (Mr. Waldegrave) to the hon. Member for Bradford, West, dated 5 December 1988 concerning the case, stating it was to be treated with priority.
§ Mr. RentonMrs. Kausar's entry clearance application to join her husband, Mr. Muhammed Nazir, for settlement was referred to the immigration and nationality department on 12 January 1988 because documents submitted by the sponsor appeared to have been altered. At no time were any of the papers connected with this case mislaid, and I am sorry that the hon. Member was misinformed on this point.
Owing to the large backlog of work in the Department, the application was not however considered until 21 November. I received a copy of the letter dated 5 December 1988 sent by my hon. Friend the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office to the hon. Member for Bradford, West on 12 December, by which time we had begun our inquiries into the employment aspects of the application. These were necessary after it was confirmed that Mr. Nazir had furnished forged documents in support of the maintenance requirements of the immigration rules.
It was not felt necessary to interview Mr. Nazir as our outstanding inquiries could more easily be answered by correspondence with the employer and solicitor. A decision to authorise settlement entry clearance was taken on 10 April immediately following receipt of a satisfactory reply on the employment aspect. Notification has been sent accordingly to the entry clearance officer in Islamabad who will contact Mrs. Kausar once it has been received.