Written question asked by Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrat) on Tuesday, 10 October 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 12 October 2006. It was answered by Lord Reid of Cardowan (Labour) on Tuesday, 7 November 2006 on behalf of the Home Office.

Asylum/Immigration

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how regularly the Department reviews its opinion on whether a country is safe for returning asylum seekers.

Answer: We continuously monitor the situation in all asylum intake countries taking into account information from a wide range of recognised and respected governmental and non-governmental organisation sources as well-as current news reports. Asylum decision-makers take into account the situation in the country of origin as it affects each asylum applicant when making a decision on an asylum claim. We would only return an individual where this was consistent with our international obligations and where the individual has been unsuccessful in any appeals against the decision in their particular case.

Secondary information