§ Lord Brougham and Vauxasked Her Majesty's Government:
What plans they have to extend to the Immigration Service decisions regarding the removal of illegal entrants.
§ The Minister of State, Home Office (Baroness Blatch):At present designated senior officers within the Immigration Service may authorise the removal of certain categories of people who have entered the United Kingdom illegally while other cases arc referred to Ministers for authority to remove. In future designated senior officers will be responsible for authorising removal in all cases other than those in which special features, such as parliamentary interest or a high level of public concern about a case, indicate that they should be referred to Ministers for decision.
The existing arrangements under which Ministers personally authorise and sign orders requiring a person's deportation from the United Kingdom are unaffected by these changes.