Asylum Seekers (Hansard, 24 July 2000)

§ 20. Mr. Russell Brown
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effect of the employment concession on the total number of applicants for asylum in the United Kingdom. [130341]
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§ Mrs. Roche
We believe that the concession, which has operated since 1986, acts as a pull factor for applicants wishing to find work in this country but who do not qualify for asylum. A number of other European countries have no such concession allowing asylum seekers to work. We are keeping the need for the concession under review, particularly in the light of the substantial progress we are making to speed up asylum decisions.

§ 22. Dr. Ladyman
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with the London boroughs about the dispersal of asylum seekers by those boroughs to other local authority areas. [130343]

§ Mrs. Roche
We have had general discussions with the Association of London Government about the dispersal of asylum seekers. We recently announced the further roll-out from today of the national asylum support scheme to include new in-country asylum applicants in London. This should, over time, reduce the number of cases where the London boroughs are proposing dispersal under the voluntary scheme.

§ 39. Sir Teddy Taylor
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on his policy towards asylum seekers. [130360]

§ Mrs. Roche
We remain committed to a fairer, faster and firmer approach to immigration and asylum, and aim to achieve most asylum decisions within two months and most appeals within a further four months from April 2001. We are already meeting the two month target for family cases. We will continue to provide protection to those in real need of it, while taking the strongest possible measures to deter unfounded claims. In particular, a new civil penalty has been introduced for bringing clandestine entrants into the United Kingdom in lorries and other vehicles.

§ Mr. Lidington
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his estimate is of his Department's spending on asylum seeker support for(a) 2000–01, (b) 2001–02, (c) 2002–03 and (d) 2003–04. [132355]

§ Mrs. Roche
The Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) budget for 2000–01 has been increased by £609 million to £1,198 million. This includes a cash estimate for spending on asylum seeker support for 2000–01 of £604 million.
Following the Spending Review, the total budget for IND has been increased by £409 million to £952 million in 2001–02, by £446 million to £990 million in 2002–03 and £501 million to £990 million in 2003–04. The provisional estimates for asylum seeker support in those years are £403 million for 2001–01, £434 million for 2002–03 and £491 million for 2003–04. The asylum support estimates for 2001–04 have been calculated on a resource basis and are not directly comparable with those for 2000–01.