§ Mr. HawkinsTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his current policy on allowing switching after entry into the minister of religion category by people who are admitted to the United Kingdom, under the immigration rules, in another capacity. [30060]
§ Mr. Nicholas BakerThe immigration rules require that a person entering the United Kingdom as a minister of religion must obtain an entry clearance for that purpose in advance. The purpose of the entry clearance requirement is to ensure that the bona fides of the applicant as a minister of religion can be fully assessed,136W in the country where he lives and works, in advance of his coming to the United Kingdom. An application to remain as a minister of religion in the United Kingdom by a person who has not entered in that capacity is therefore to be refused. We would be prepared, exceptionally, to waive this requirement only where a bona fide minister of religion had been granted a visa or leave to enter as a visitor specifically to attend an interview for a job as a minister in the United Kingdom and was offered the job; or where a bona fide minister of religion, who had been granted a visa or leave to enter as a visitor specifically for a preaching tour of the United Kingdom, was asked to fill a vacant post as a minister in this country, the job offer appeared to be genuinely unexpected at the time the applicant entered the United Kingdom and there were good community relations reasons for allowing him to stay.