§ Lord Campbell-Savoursasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many of the asylum seekers within the United Kingdom in January, estimated as 24,000, have not been accepted; and how many have left the United Kingdom since January. [HL5837]
51WA
§ Lord FilkinThe number of asylum applications in the United Kingdom, excluding dependants, made in January 2002 was 6,575.
The number of asylum applicants awaiting an initial decision at the end of January 2002 was 36,500, excluding dependants. The number of these applicants who have since been refused asylum and Exceptional Leave to Remain (ELR), some of whom have subsequently appealed, who have been removed since January (including returns under the voluntary return programmes run by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM)), is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case records.
It is also not possible to say how many of these applicants were refused asylum and ELR and (whether after an unsuccessful appeal or not) voluntarily left the United Kingdom without informing the Immigration Service.
Lord Campbell of Croyasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many people, having entered the United Kingdom, have applied for asylum this year. [HL5838]
§ Lord FilkinInformation on how many asylum applicants entered the UK in a specific period is not available.
Excluding dependants, there were a total of 39,920 applications for asylum in the United Kingdom during the first six months of 2002, of which 26,925 applied in country. Including dependants, the total number of applicants was estimated to be 51,500.
Information on asylum applications is published quarterly. The next publication will present statistics for the third quarter of 2002 and will be available from 29 November 2002 on the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate website at http://www.homoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigrationl.html.
§ Lord Hyltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will set up a maximum period during which asylum applicants who are not charged with any offence may be detained; and, if so, what period they would consider appropriate. [HL5874]
§ Lord FilkinThere is no express statutory time limit on detention under the Immigration Act 1971 and we have no plans to set such a limit.
§ Lord Hyltonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will give assurance that pregnant women will not be detained in custody for immigration or asylum reasons (unless awaiting deportation); and, if not, why not. [HL5875]
52WA
§ Lord FilkinPregnant women are not normally considered suitable for detention under the Immigration Acts unless there is a clear prospect of early removal from the United Kingdom and medical advice suggests no question of confinement prior to this.