§ Mr. SpearingTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the actual or estimated number of(a) applicants for political asylum in the United Kingdom and (b) persons not applicants but dependent on them, broken down to show those currently residing in (i) Tower Hamlets, (ii) Hackney, (iii) other parts of London, (iv) the west midlands, (v) the west riding, (vi) the north-west, (vii) the north-east and (viii) elsewhere in England and Wales. [4605]
§ Mr. KirkhopeAs at 31 October 1995, 66,655 principal applicants were awaiting an initial decision on their asylum applications. It is estimated that these applicants have approximately 20,000 dependants.
Information on the places of residence of people currently seeking asylum is not held centrally.
§ Mr. MaddenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements he is making under his proposals in the Asylum and Immigration Bill to ensure he is regularly briefed on human rights and political conditions in overseas countries, with particular reference to those countries he designates as not giving rise to serious risks of persecutions; and what arrangements he is making to consider representations that certain countries should be(a) included and (b) excluded from such designation. [4610]
§ Miss WiddecombeConditions in countries of origin are continuously monitored by the asylum division on the basis of information from a wide range of sources including the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and non-governmental organisations. We are always prepared to consider representations.
§ Mr. MaddenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy(a) to publish regularly reports which give profiles of human rights and political conditions prevailing in particular countries, (b) to list those countries on which home country reports are held, (c) to place all home country 494W reports and revisions in the Library and (d) to ensure that the reports are available to immigration law practitioners and human rights organisations; and if he will make a statement. [4612]
§ Mr. KirkhopeAsylum applications will continue to be considered on the particular facts of each case. Summary background briefs on Ghana and Nigeria have been sent to the immigration appellate authorities, the Immigration Law Practitioners Association and other interested organisations.
The Nigeria brief is being updated; when this has been done, both briefs will be placed in the Library and any further such briefs will be made available in the same way.
§ Mr. SpearingTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list(a) the official statements and (b) documents other than those contained in the Asylum and Immigration Bill relating to the measures and methods that Her Majesty's Government intend to adopt in respect of current problems of asylum and immigration; and if he will list for each (i) change and (ii) innovation the information his Department has (1) obtained and (2) evaluated relating to its practicality and efficiency. [4745]
§ Miss WiddecombeWe have made available to the House a list of background papers which are relevant to the Asylum and Immigration Bill.
§ Ms HodgeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many representations he has received on the Asylum and Immigration Bill; and how many have been in whole or in part opposed to the Bill. [5272]
§ Miss WiddecombeWe have received a substantial amount of correspondence about our asylum and immigration proposals expressing a wide range of views. To date, 43 representations have been received from members of the public in favour of the Asylum and Immigration Bill, and 38 against.