HC Deb 18 January 2002 vol 378 c548W
Bob Spink

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to provide additional accommodation for asylum seekers in Essex; and in which towns. [28419]

Angela Eagle

It is current policy to disperse asylum seekers away from London and the south-east. In his statement on 29 October last year my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary made it clear that the policy of dispersing asylum seekers away from London and the south-east would continue. I can confirm that to date the Immigration and Nationality Directorate has not identified any areas in Essex suitable for use as cluster areas for the dispersal of asylum seekers.