Written question asked by Lord Redwood (Conservative) on Wednesday, 26 April 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 2 May 2006. It was answered by Tony McNulty (Labour) on Monday, 8 May 2006 on behalf of the Home Office.

Asylum/Immigration

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many illegal immigrants are thought to be in the UK.

Answer: No government has ever been able to produce an accurate figure for the number of people who are in the country illegally. By its very nature it is impossible to quantify accurately, and that remains the case. Although it is impossible to determine accurately how many people are in the UK illegally, the Home Office published a report which included an estimate of the size of the illegal migrant population in the UK in 2001. A copy of the RDS On-line report 29/05 Sizing the unauthorised (illegal) migrant population in the United Kingdom in 2001 can be found at: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/notes/june_summaries.html#rdsolr2905.

Secondary information