§ Lord Acknerasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether asylum seekers and those seeking to emigrate to the United Kingdom are subject to compulsory medical examinations; and, if not, why not. [HL3102]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Filkin)Under the Immigration Act 1971, immigration officers are able to refer persons seeking leave to enter the United Kingdom, including those seeking asylum, to medical inspectors at ports of entry. Paragraph 36 of the Immigration Rules (HC 395) sets out the circumstances in which immigration officers may refer an individual to a medical inspector for examination.
Current policy is to refer for medical examination any persons who mention health or medical treatment as a reason for their visit, or who appear not to be in good mental or physical health, or who intend to remain in the United Kingdom for more than six months and come from an area of the world which is high risk for tuberculosis. In addition, the Immigration Rules state that those seeking leave to enter the United Kingdom for more than six months should normally be referred.
People applying abroad for entry clearance to the United Kingdom are not subject to mandatory 30WA medical inspections, but the entry clearance officer has the same discretion as an immigration officer to refer applicants for entry clearance for medical examination.
In addition, asylum seekers attending the induction centre at Dover are given basic health screening, which includes full medical history and tuberculosis screening and referral (as appropriate). We will extend this process as we develop a network of induction centres. However, there are currently no powers to require all asylum seekers to undergo health screening.
In response to public concerns about the incidence of infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS, TB and hepatitis B and C among immigrants, the Government are currently undertaking a comprehensive review of imported infections and immigration.