§ Mr. MaddenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list those organizations whose reports on human rights internationally are routinely considered by his Department; with special reference to those who consider asylum application procedures. [14119]
§ Miss WiddecombeThe asylum division considers a wide range of material relating to human rights including from United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the International Commission of Jurists, the parliamentary human rights group, the Commonwealth human rights initiative, Human Rights Watch, the Refugee Council, the Minority Rights Group, Asylum Aid, the United States Department of State and the Canadian Immigration and Refugee Board. The Department also has access to Council of the European Union Heads of Mission reports and advice from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on human rights issues. Other non-governmental and media reports are monitored on a regional or country basis.
UNHCR, Amnesty International, Asylum Aid, the Refugee Council and, in addition, the Council of Europe are known to have issued documents considering asylum application procedures.