§ Mr. Andrew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Vietnamese refugees there are currently in Hong Kong; how many he estimates will apply to settle in the United Kingdom; on what criteria their applications will be judged; and how many it is proposed to admit.
§ Mr. RentonOn 25 May, there were 14,200 Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong. A further 19,243 Vietnamese were awaiting examination of their claim for asylum. It had been decided that 1,410 did not qualify for refugee status.
On 23 February 1989 the Government confirmed its intention to admit a further 1,000 Vietnamese refugees from Hong Kong for settlement in the United Kingdom. The 1,000 will include relatives of Vietnamese already here and others with the potential quickly to become self-sufficient in the United Kingdom, together with some who have been in the camps for a long time and have not been accepted elsewhere.
§ Mr. MullinTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Vietnamese refugees have had their travel documents confiscated for using those documents to travel to Vietnam.
§ Mr. RentonRefugee status is accorded to those who have a well-founded fear of persecution in their own country. Although withdrawal of status is not automatic, travel to that country may put into question a continuing claim to refugee status and eligibility for refugeee travel documents. Following visits to Vietnam, 39 refugee travel documents have been impounded on return. So far, seven holders have been required to surrender their documents and decisions about the remainder will be made shortly, after careful consideration of the individual circumstances. In all cases, the persons concerned retain indefinite leave to remain in the United Kingdom. It would be open to them to apply for discretionary travel documents.