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22 Feb 2010 : Column 328W—continued
Asylum
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applicants for leave to remain have been awaiting a decision for (a) up to six months, (b) up to one year, (c) up to two years, (d) up to three years and (e) more than three years. [309963]
Mr. Woolas: The UK Border Agency works to agreed service standards. The information requested, expressed as a percentage of cases which met the service standard, is as follows:
| 2006-07 | 2007-08 | 2008-00 | |
| Note: These data are not provided under National Statistics protocols. They have been derived from local management information and are therefore provisional and subject to change. | |||
Mr. Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what avenues and procedures are available to hon. Members wishing to make representations to decision-makers in the UK Border Agency on longstanding asylum cases. [313630]
Alan Johnson: Members of Parliament may make representations to the UK Border Agency on the handling of cases in the following ways: they may write in to the Agency or contact the MP's Enquiry Line or their MP Account Manager and can track the progress of their letters online.
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent steps he has taken to reduce the number of outstanding asylum applications; how many staff have been assigned to this task in the last three months; and if he will make a statement. [314335]
Mr. Woolas: In the last three months there have been around 1,000 members of staff working within the Case Resolution Directorate. I refer to paragraph 15 of Lin Homer's letter to the Home Affairs Select Committee dated 19 October 2009 for our most recent update on progress. Lin Homer will provide a further update to the Committee in February 2010.
Mr. Blunkett: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what mechanisms are in place to enable hon. Members to present information to the UK Border Agency on behalf of an asylum applicant in circumstances in which the applicant is unable to provide such information in person. [314407]
Alan Johnson: Members of Parliament may make representations to the UK Border Agency about the handling of asylum applications on behalf of the applicant by writing to the UK Border Agency or by contacting the UK Border Agency MPs' Enquiry Line or their MP Account Manager.
However, MPs are not able to make initial asylum applications on behalf of their constituents and, since the introduction of the requirement to make further representations on asylum claims in person in October 2009, neither are MPs able to submit further submissions on behalf of their constituents, although they can, of course, make representations.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what proportion of interviews held with asylum seekers by UK Border Agency staff were (a) video and (b) audio recorded in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [316215]
Mr. Woolas: Asylum interviews are not routinely recorded. In normal circumstances caseowners conducting asylum interviews take a verbatim handwritten record of the interview which is made available to the applicant and their representative. However, where an applicant or their representative asks for their interview to be audio recorded, it is UKBA policy to comply with that request in addition to the provision of a hand written verbatim record.
There is no central record of the number of cases that are recorded.
No asylum interviews are video recorded.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what proportion of interviews held with asylum seekers by UK Border Agency staff in Cardiff were (a) video and (b) audio recorded in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [316334]
Mr. Woolas: There is no facility within the UK Border Agency's office in Cardiff for the video recording of interviews with asylum seekers. While there is no legal requirement for such interviews to be recorded by means of audio, where a request to do so is made either by the applicant or their legal representative it is the practice of the UK Border Agency to comply with the request. This is in addition to the provision of a handwritten verbatim record.
Asylum: Compensation
Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much his Department paid in compensation to the families of asylum seekers (a) in total and (b) in respect of unlawful detention in each of the last five years. [317367]
Mr. Woolas: The Home Office prepares its accounts in accordance with UK GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) adapted for the public sector in accordance with guidance issued by HM Treasury.
The information is not collated in the way requested.
Asylum: Detainees
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times on average a failed asylum seeker was transferred between detention centres prior to removal or deportation in the latest period for which figures are available. [317829]
Alan Johnson: The information requested could be obtained by undertaking a detailed examination of individual records which would be only at disproportionate cost.
However, detainees are not routinely moved between centres without an operational reason. This is normally to ensure occupancy levels of the bed space is maximised, to re-position detainees close to airports in preparation for their removal from the UK, to attend court hearings, medical appointments or for an interview.
Asylum: Finance
Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum seekers received section 4 support in each region in each quarter since 1 April 2007. [313899]
Mr. Woolas: Information on section 4 support is published annually and quarterly in the Control of Immigration: Statistics United Kingdom bulletin which is available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
We do not publish quarterly statistics by region, but we do hold the data for internal management use. The internal management data do not undergo the same quality assurance processes as published statistics. The following data are provisional and subject to change. Consequently the regional data when totalled are slightly different to the equivalent available published data. It should also be noted that the data relate to numbers that were in receipt of support as at the dates shown and not the total number that received support.
| UK Border Agency region | 2 July 2007 | 1 October 2007 | 31 December 2007 | 31 March 2008 | 30 June 2008 | 6 October 2008 | 29 December 2008 | 5 April 2009 | 29 June 2009 | 28 September 2009 |
The data from April 2007 to July 2007 were previously recorded on a different system and subsequently migrated over. We are therefore not satisfied that these figures are sufficiently robust for release and have been omitted.
Asylum: Housing
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst of 21 October 2009, Official Report, column 1529W, on "Asylum: Housing", how much has been spent on each of the 30 contracts for providing housing for asylum seekers. [311730]
Mr. Woolas: The following table details expenditure from the onset of contracts in 2006 until 29 November 2009. The total figures have been taken from internal management information and the figures for provider spend have not been specifically audited independently. Figures have been rounded to one decimal point. Four of the contracts are no longer operational.
| Accommodation costs 2006-09 | |
| Supplier | Total (£ million) |
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