HC Deb 21 March 2001 vol 365 cc220-1W
Mr. Randall

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the criteria under which an immigration officer may grant(a) an asylum seeker and (b) an immigrant a 28 day permit to enter the United Kingdom. [154297]

Mrs. Roche

Although immigration officers are able to exercise discretion when granting leave to enter, there are no specific categories which provide for entry for 28 days only; therefore, no criteria exist for such a grant of leave.

Newly arrived asylum seekers would not normally be granted entry on arrival. They would, instead, be granted temporary admission pending consideration of their application for asylum. Dependent upon circumstances, the period of temporary admission will vary. However, if they had no friends or family in the United Kingdom and were granted temporary admission, this could initially be for one month, but again no specific criteria exist for this.

Mr. Randall

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many(a) asylum seekers and (b) immigrants were given temporary admission to the United Kingdom by immigration officials at Heathrow in each of the last six months. [154308]

Mrs. Roche

The information is given in the table

Table 2: Non asylum cases granted temporary admission (excluding DAS)
Arrival month Total Heathrow Terminal 1 Total Heathrow Terminal 2 Total Heathrow Terminal 3 Total Heathrow Terminal 4 Monthly total
September 2000 111 181 231 84 607
October 2000 79 169 188 67 503
November 2000 99 136 187 84 506
December 2000 102 143 209 52 506
January 2001 106 165 166 84 521
February 2001 123 154 220 90 587
Port total 620 948 1,201 461 3,230

Note:

All totals exclude asylum dependants (DAS.)