§ Mr. SpearingTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases in which people whose applications for political asylum were under consideration were not determined at the closest date to 31 December 1994 for which figures are available.[3143]
§ Mr. KirkhopeAs at 31 December 1994, there were 55,225 applications for asylum awaiting initial decisions. The number of people who had claimed asylum and were being detained on this date is not known. As at 18 November 1994, 654 persons, who at some stage had sought asylum including those awaiting removal
Number of people detained on 21 November 1995 who have sought asylum, by place of detention and stage of application Awaiting initial decision on application Awaiting result of appeal Awaiting removal after application refused Other Total Detained in prison service establishments 63 207 94 14 378 Detained in other places of detention 89 188 57 64 398 Total detained 152 395 151 78 776
§ Mr. HendersonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will provide a breakdown of the number of asylum seekers currently detained under Immigration Act powers by(a) nationality, (b) gender, (c) length of detention, (d) place of detention and (e) immigration status at the time of application. [549]
654Wfollowing refusal of their applications as well as those whose applications were under consideration or subject to appeal, were being held in detention.
§ Ms Janet AndersonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for asylum have been rejected on safe third country grounds to date. [1671]
§ Mr. KirkhopeA total of 865 asylum applications were refused on safe third country grounds in 1994 and 1,205 in the first nine months of 1995. A nationality split is available in table 4.3 of the Home Office statistical bulletin, "Asylum Statistics United Kingdom 1994", issue 15/95. A copy of this publication is available in the Library.
§ Ms AndersonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement about the short procedure pilot scheme introduced in May 1995 for processing asylum claims. [1689]
§ Mr. KirkhopeI refer the hon. Member to the statement made to the House by my right hon. and learned Friend on Monday 20 November, at column 335–38.
§ Ms AndersonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum applications are currently waiting to be heard. [1686]
§ Mr. KirkhopeA total of 66,665 asylum applications were awaiting an initial decision as at 31 October 1995.
§ Mr. GerrardTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers whose cases(a) have yet to be determined and (b) have been determined are (i) currently detained and (ii) currently detained in prisons; and what is the average period of their detention. [986]
§ Mr. KirkhopeAs at 21 November 1995, a total of 776 persons who had at some stage sought asylum were detained. This figure includes people awaiting removal following refusal of their applications as well as those whose applications were under consideration or subject to appeal. Of this figure, 267 had been in detention less than one month, 99 between one and two months, 304 between two and six months, 89 between six and 12 months, and 17 had been detained for longer than 12 months.
Information on the stage of application and place of detention of people who have sought asylum is given in the table.
§ Mr. KirkhopeAs at 21 November 1995, a total of 776 persons who had at some stage sought asylum were detained. This figure includes people awaiting removal following refusal of their applications as well as those whose applications were under consideration or subject to appeal. Of this figure, 267 had been in detention less than 655W one month, 99 between one and two months, 304 between two and six months, 89 between six and 12 months, and 17 had been detained for longer than 12 months.
Information on the gender, immigration status, nationality and location of those detained, as at 21 November 1995, is provided in tables 1 to 3.
Table 1: Number of people detained on 21 November 1995 who had sought asylum by immigration status and gender Immigration status Male Female Total Port case 363 34 397 Illegal entrant case 320 8 328 Deportation case 49 2 51 Total 732 44 776
656W
Table 2: Number of people detained on 21 November 1995 who had sought asylum, by nationality Number Afghanistan 6 Albania 4 Algeria 78 Angola 9 Bangladesh 15 China 48 Colombia 5 Cote D'Ivoire 3 Cuba 3 Cyprus 5 Ecuador 3 Ethiopia 3 Gambia 52 Ghana 34 India 106 Iran 9 Iraq 2 Jamaica 7 Kenya 24 Lebanon 4 Liberia 13 Morocco 8 Niger 2 Nigeria 107 Pakistan 31 Peru 3 Poland 8 Romania 35 Sierra Leone 8 Somalia 9 Sri Lanka 19 Sudan 3 Tanzania 5 Togo 2 Tunisia 3 Turkey 24 Uganda 8 Former USSR 15 Former Yugoslavia 9 Zaire 17 Other nationalities 17 Nationality not known 10 Total 776
Table 3: Number of persons detained who have claimed asylum as at 21 November 1995, by place of detention Place of detention Number detained Prisons/YOIs HMP Rochester 160 HMP Haslar 93 HMP Winson Green 43 HMP Greenock 11 HMP Wormwood Scrubs 11 HMP Crumlin Road Belfast 9 HMP Armley Leeds 7 HMP Liverpool 5 HMP Brixton 4 HMP Wolds 4 HMP Belmarsh 4 HMP Craiginchess Aberdeen 3 HMP Edinburgh Saughton 3 HMP Doncaster 2 HMP Hindley 2 HMP Chelmsford 2 HMP The Mount 2 HMP Exeter 2 Other HM Prisons 9 Total 378 Other places of detention Campsfield House 164 Harmondsworth 99 Gatwick Detention Centre 44 Dover Habour Board 31 Stansted 14 Queens Building 13 Newhaven 9 Manchester Airport Detention Suite 5 Dover West 3 Other Detention Centres 2 Police cells 14 Total 398 Grand total 776