§ Baroness Pitkeathleyasked Her Majesty's Government:
What action they are to take to deal with asylum applications that are certified to be manifestly unfounded. [HL5674]
§ The Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department (Baroness Scotland of Asthal)The Government continue to regard the Oakington reception centre as a cornerstone in their overall strategy for processing asylum applications as speedily and fairly as possible. It operates together with a fast-track appeals process to bring those applications determined as unfounded quickly to the point of being returnable. The Government wish to build on this process still further in cases where the asylum applicant has been certified as manifestly unfounded and is detained at the end of the Oakington process. The chief adjudicator has agreed that hearings of appeals in such cases will be listed for hearing between six and eight days after they are received by the immigration appellate authorities.