§ Lady HermonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many illegal immigrants were detected at Northern Ireland's(a) ports and (b) airports in the last five years for which figures are available. [150673]
§ Ms BlearsThe number of people against whom illegal entry action was initiated in each of the last five years for which information is available is shown in the table. Information on whether these persons were detected at port or later in-country is unavailable and would be available only by examination of individual case-files at disproportionate cost.
Persons against whom illegal entry action was initiated 1998 to 2002 Number of persons 1998 16,500 1999 21,165 2000 47,325 2001 69,875 20021 48,050 1Provisional figures. Illegal entry action is initiated against those people who are detected entering, or having entered the country clandestinely or by means of deception, either verbal or documentary.
This information and other statistics on the immigration and asylum system are published annually in the Command publication "Control of Immigration: Statistics United Kingdom" a copy of which is in the House Library and can be found on the Home Office website: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html