HC Deb 13 January 2003 vol 397 cc446-7W
Mr. Austin Mitchell

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consultation was held with the towns and cities to which asylum seekers will be sent; how many agreed to accept them; and what responsibility(a) NASS and (b) the accommodation agency has for assessing health and social services provision. [88674]

Beverley Hughes

Prior to becoming operational the National Asylum Support Service (NASS) wrote to regional consortia for each potential cluster area early in 2000 to seek their views on issues such as integration, access to education and healthcare before finalising the initial cluster list. Any representations against designation were carefully considered by NASS before a final decision was made.

Neither NASS nor our accommodation providers formally assess the impact of dispersal on healthcare and social services. These are matters for the Department of Health (DOH) but it is not intended that dispersal should place an overwhelming burden on provision of services and MASS does liaise with colleagues in the DOH about dispersal.

Mr. Austin Mitchell

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what review of the experience of(a) Clearsprings and (b) Landmark (Liverpool) in (i) housing and (ii) accommodation of asylum seekers was conducted before contracts were agreed; [88676]

(2) how many of his contractors for making provision for asylum seekers are (a) run, (b), owned and (c) managed by former asylum seekers. [88675]

Beverley Hughes

The National Asylum Support Service (NASS) is part of the Home Office and all its procurement exercises are undertaken in accordance with standard Government procurement rules. As part of the procurement process checks were made on the capability and suitability of potential suppliers and these checks would have included a review of their experience of housing and accommodation but not necessarily limited to asylum seekers. Former asylum seekers who have been given refugee status or allowed to remain on another basis are able to work and engage in business. Their former status as an asylum seeker would not have been taken into account in deciding whether the company was reputable.

Mr. Malins

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy to allow new asylum seekers to be able to work and so enable them to pay for their own support. [89534]

Beverley Hughes

There are no plans to re-introduce an employment concession for asylum seekers. The concession was established when widespread delays were occurring in the asylum system. By the time the concession was abolished in July last year it had become largely irrelevant and only applicable to a minority of applicants. The vast majority—around 80 per cent.—of asylum seekers currently receive an initial decision within six months of their application being submitted and could not therefore benefit from the terms of the concession.

We also believe that allowing new asylum applicants to work could act as a pull factor. We are determined to maintain a robust asylum process which helps those fleeing persecution and not those who wish to come to the UK to work. Those who wish to come here for the purpose of employment have a range of schemes open to them and we continue to open up more routes to allow people to come here and work legally in ways which boost our economy.