Written question asked by Baroness Neville-Jones (Conservative), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord West of Spithead (Labour) on Tuesday, 15 December 2009.

Visas

Question: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there have been any successful attempts since 1997 by individuals who pose a terrorist threat to enter the United Kingdom using student visas.

Answer: We do not comment on individual cases for security reasons. Since 2007, all those applying for UK visas have had to submit their biometrics as part of the application process, which have been checked against security and police databases. This includes those coming to the UK as students. The Government are committed to preventing abuse of the visa system by individuals posing a terrorist threat, and have a range of legal powers to enable this.

Secondary information