§ Mr. ClappisonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer to the right hon. Member for Caernarfon (Mr. Wigley) of 20 July 1998,Official Report, column 380, on asylum seekers, if he will list the more efficient working practices referred to in the answer; and if the plans for computerisation of casework are those plans in respect of which the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, the hon. Member for North Warwickshire (Mr. O'Brien), undertook to write to the hon. Member for Hertsmere in his answer of 7 May, Official Report, column 452. [52222]
§ Mr. Mike O'Brien[holding answer 27 July 1998]: We have in hand organisational changes in the Immigration and Nationality Directorate, which will result in a new Integrated Casework Directorate. This will handle the casework currently dealt with in five separate Directorates. We will get rid of the present hierarchical system of decision-making, in which wasteful duplication often causes delay.
388W14 July 1998, Official Report, columns 103–04, on driving offences, if he will provide similar figures in respect of motorists in Gloucestershire for the most recent five years for which figures are available. [52286]
§ Mr. MichaelFigures for the years 1993–96 are as follows. The data for 1992 have been archived and are not readily available. Figures for 1997 are not yet available.
We will devolve decision-making to the appropriate level, in teams which will deal with a case from start to finish. The teams will be fully supported by up-to-date information and we will have in place quality assurance mechanisms to audit decisions. We are well on the way to establishing this new Directorate. A pilot of the working methods will start in August.
The computerisation plans referred to in my answer to the right hon. Member for Caernarfon of 20 July are the same plans about which I undertook to write to the hon. Member for Hertsmere in my answer of 7 May. We still await proposals from Siemens Business Services for completing the next stage of the computerisation; the company has indicated that these will be available by 28 August.
§ Mr. GaleTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to provide central Government funding to local authorities for the(a) social services, (b) health and (c) education costs incurred by asylum seekers. [53725]
389W
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienUnder the proposals set out in the White Paper published by my right hon. Friend on 27 July, from April 1999 the Home Office will have a budget for the cost of providing food, shelter and daily living expenses for asylum seekers. Detailed arrangements for the management of this budget have not yet been made. No changes are proposed in the funding of health care, education or other facilities used by asylum seekers.
§ Mr. GaleTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what statutory authority determines the United Kingdom's ability to return asylum seekers who have travelled to the United Kingdom through safe third countries directly to their country of origin. [53724]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienThe Secretary of State may decide to consider the asylum application of any person who claims asylum in the United Kingdom, notwithstanding the fact that they may have previously travelled through one or more safe third countries, and, if he refuses the claim, he may seek to return the person to their country of origin under the provisions of the Immigration Act 1971 (and in particular paragraphs 8–10 of schedule 2 to that Act). Once the person has been notified of the Secretary of State's decision, they may not, under Schedule 3 to the 1993 Asylum and Immigration Appeals Act and Part II of Schedule 2 to the 1971 Act, be returned whilst any appeal they may have made against the decision to grant or vary leave to enter or remain is pending.
In practice, the Dublin Convention affects our ability to return people to third countries.
390W
Applications received for asylum, excluding dependants, on arrival at Heathrow airport by Nationality from 1 May 1997 to 31 May 1998 May 1997 June 1997 July 1997 August 1997 September 1997 October 1997 November 1997 Europe Bulgaria 5 5 10 15 * 5 10 Cyprus 10 15 15 10 10 25 35 Poland 20 20 20 20 20 25 30 Romania — 5 * * * * * Turkey 15 10 15 10 10 10 10 Former USSR 40 45 45 45 30 50 35 Former Yugoslavia 15 15 20 30 30 40 60 Americas Colombia 160 40 10 5 5 5 5 Ecuador 45 120 225 20 * 5 * Africa Algeria 5 10 10 5 10 10 10 Angola 5 10 — 5 5 * 5 Ethiopia 5 5 5 * * * * Gambia * — — — — * — Ghana 5 5 5 5 5 5 — Ivory Coast — 5 * * * * 5 Kenya 5 5 25 10 25 35 30 Liberia 5 — * * — * — Nigeria 10 10 10 10 20 15 20 Sierra Leone 5 5 5 10 10 10 5 Somalia 30 25 20 25 45 40 30 Sudan 5 5 15 5 15 5 5 Tanzania — * 5 5 5 * * Togo — — — * — * — Uganda 5 5 * 5 5 10 10 Zaire 10 10 10 15 10 15 10
§ Mr. GaleTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his oral statement of 27 July 1998,Official Report, columns 35–53, what external legal advice he has sought on the applicability of the provisions of the Dublin Convention as they relate to those of the Geneva Convention concerning asylum seekers. [53723]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienMy right hon. Friend the Home Secretary has received external legal advice on various matters which have arisen during the course of legal challenges to decisions to transfer asylum seekers to other member states under the Dublin Convention. The Dublin Convention is primarily concerned with the issue of which European Union (EU) member state is to consider an asylum application made within the EU; it does not deal with the merits of that claim, which are the concern of the 1951 Geneva Convention.
§ Mr. WilshireTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many passengers arriving at Heathrow Airport in each month since 1 May 1997 have sought asylum upon arrival; what was their country of origin; and how many of them remain in the United Kingdom. [53826]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienInformation relating to persons who applied for asylum on arrival at Heathrow airport between 1 May 1997 and 31 May 1998, by nationality and month, is given in the table.
The available information is that, as at 30 June 1998, some 740 of those asylum seekers had been granted leave to enter as recognised refugees or on other grounds and a further 800 had been removed or departed voluntarily.
In addition, a number of the applicants will be awaiting a decision on their claim or the outcome of an appeal.
391W
Applications received for asylum, excluding dependants, on arrival at Heathrow airport by Nationality from 1 May 1997 to 31 May 1998 May 1997 June 1997 July 1997 August 1997 September 1997 October 1997 November 1997 Middle East Iran 25 15 15 25 30 25 30 Iraq 40 35 70 65 60 45 50 Lebanon 5 5 5 5 20 10 5 Asia Afghanistan 35 45 55 70 80 75 80 China 30 25 25 20 15 30 40 India 20 15 10 15 10 5 15 Pakistan 15 20 50 45 50 55 25 Sri Lanka 50 35 40 40 40 45 40 Others1 40 55 50 70 85 100 55 Total 670 620 775 620 650 710 670 392W393W
December 1997 January 1998 February 1998 March 1998 April 1998 May 1998 Total Europe Bulgaria 15 10 5 5 10 10 100 Cyprus 35 10 5 * — * 175 Poland 75 70 75 80 115 70 640 Romania — — 5 5 * * 25 Turkey 20 20 20 15 5 15 170 Former USSR 70 35 30 55 75 60 615 Former Yugoslavia 135 55 30 30 65 25 540 Americas Colombia 15 25 25 10 * 10 315 Ecuador 10 5 * * 5 5 440 Africa Algeria 20 * * 5 10 5 100 Angola 5 5 5 5 * * 50 Ethiopia 5 5 * 10 * * 40 Gambia — * — — — — 5 Ghana 5 5 5 5 * 5 55 Ivory Coast — * — * — — 15 Kenya 15 35 20 25 15 20 270 Liberia * — * * — — 15 Nigeria 15 30 15 25 20 30 230 Sierra Leone 5 5 5 5 5 5 75 Somalia 35 45 35 35 25 15 405 Sudan 5 10 5 5 5 10 90 Tanzania * 5 * 5 * * 30 Togo — — — — — — * Uganda * * 5 5 5 5 50 Zaire 10 15 10 20 15 10 160 Middle East Iran 40 35 35 25 25 25 345 Iraq 75 60 45 65 40 35 680 Lebanon 10 5 5 5 5 5 95 Asia Afghanistan 110 50 55 95 75 70 890 China 50 45 30 40 25 45 415 India 20 15 10 15 10 10 170 Pakistan 30 35 35 40 45 35 475 Sri Lanka 70 40 45 50 65 90 655 Others1 100 65 85 95 105 75 980 Total 995 740 640 775 775 680 9,320 1Includes all other nationalities not identified in the table.