§ Lord Lester of Herne Hillasked Her Majesty's Government:
What authorisations they have approved in respect of categories of passengers arriving in the United Kingdom permitting discrimination on grounds of ethnic or national origin; and [HL1916]
What conditions, including periods of review, they have attached to any authorisation of discrimination on the grounds of ethnic or national origin against categories of passengers arriving in the United Kingdom; and [Hl1917]
Whether they will publish information retrospectively about the use made of authorisations permitting discrimination on the grounds of ethnic or national origin against categories of passengers arriving in the United Kingdom and any information which justifies the making of such authorisations. [HL1918]
§ Lord Bassam of BrightonMy honourable friend the Home Office Minister of State (Mrs Roche) has announced today in another place that she has made an authorisation, in the light of evidence about the particular risks posed to the effective operation of our immigration controls by some members of certain ethnic or national groups, permitting the Immigration Service to discriminate, where necessary, in the examination of passengers belonging to the following ethnic or national groups: Tamils, Kurds, Pontic Greeks, Roma, Somalis, Albanians, Afghans and ethnic Chinese presenting a Malaysian or Japanese passport or any other travel document issued by Malaysia or Japan.
The decision on a passenger's entitlement to enter the United Kingdom will continue to be taken on the merits of the case in accordance with the Immigration Rules. The authorisation simply allows the Immigration Service to prioritise and manage its resources effectively in undertaking examinations necessary in order to reach that decision. En the majority of cases, any delay experienced by legitimate passengers in the groups concerned while passing through the control will be very short.
The authorisation specifies the particular legal powers exercisable by immigration officers to which it relates. My honourable friend the Minister of State (Mrs Roche) will review the authorisation concerning 79WA discrimination on the basis of ethnic or national origin in the examination of passengers each month. A copy of the additional authorisation has been placed in the Library. Any future additional or amended authorisations will also be placed in the Library.
The Race Monitor to be appointed under Section 19E of the Race Relations Act 1976 (as amended) will report to Parliament via the Secretary of State on the likely effect of authorisations made by Ministers and on how they are operated in practice by officials. In addition, the Government are currently considering whether it would be feasible for them to publish information retrospectively about the use made of authorisations covering discrimination on the grounds of ethnic or national origin in the examination of passengers. The Government would be prepared to publish information justifying the making of such authorisations to the extent that publication would not prejudice the effective administration of immigration controls or other statutory provisions.