HC Deb 16 January 2001 vol 361 cc200-1W
Mr. Hilary Benn

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what arrangements are made to ensure that asylum seekers who cannot read English are sent correspondence about vouchers in their own language. [144680]

Mrs. Roche

Sodexho Pass UK, the company contracted by the Home Office to print and distribute vouchers to asylum seekers, produces advice leaflets in 11 languages, which include English, Somali, French, Arabic, Albanian, Spanish, Russian, Turkish, Persian, Slovakian and Czech. A leaflet in the relevant language is included in the support packs the National Asylum Support Service sends out to asylum seekers along with their emergency vouchers. In addition, Sodexho Pass UK provides telephone helplines, at local call rates, in the same 11 language. The relevant telephone helpline number is printed on an individual asylum seeker's vouchers according to the language he or she speaks. Asylum seekers who are unable to communicate in one of the specified languages are issued with the English version of the leaflet and helpline number and can use their local One-Stop Service for advice about the voucher scheme.

The Home Office has grant funding agreements with several refugee organisations. As part of this agreement, refugee organisations provide a One-Stop Service to brief asylum seekers on a range of issues. One of their responsibilities is to brief asylum seekers about the support arrangements, including the voucher scheme, which may include providing briefing in the asylum seeker's own language. They have also issued joint guidance about claiming asylum in the United Kingdom that includes the support arrangements. This is printed in English, Albanian, Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, French, Kurdish (Sorani), Somali and Tamil.

Ann Clwyd

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers have been accommodated in Wales under the Government's dispersal arrangements, indicating the local authority areas concerned. [144956]

Mrs. Roche

The available information at the end of December 2000 is that 301 asylum seekers (including dependants) were allocated accommodation in the County of Wrexham in Wales by the National Asylum Support Service (NASS). 1 Figure rounded to the nearest 10

Mr. Cox

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seeker applications were awaiting a final decision on 1 January. [1449051

Mrs. Roche

The number of asylum applications awaiting an initial decision has decreased every month since January 2000. On 30 November the number stood at 69,870, the latest date for which information is available.

Information on the number of cases awaiting an initial decision on 31 December 2000 is duo to be published on 25 January 2001 on the Home Office website at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/index.htm as part of the regular publication of asylum statistics.

Mr. Kilfoyle

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers have been dispersed to Liverpool; and how many of them have returned to the South East of England. [145275]

Mrs. Roche

The information available at the end of December 2000 is that 1,7801 asylum seekers (including dependants) were allocated accommodation in Liverpool under the National Asylum Support Service (NASS) dispersal scheme. The number of asylum seekers who may have returned to the South East of England following dispersal to Liverpool is not available. 1Figure rounded to the nearest 10