Written question asked by Baroness Tonge (Liberal Democrat) on Wednesday, 22 January 2003, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 29 January 2003. It was answered by Baroness Hughes of Stretford (Labour) on Wednesday, 29 January 2003 on behalf of the Home Office.

Home Office

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many central and eastern European Roma he expects to migrate to the UK following the accession to the EU of (a) the Czech Republic, (b) Slovakia, (c) Hungary and (d) Poland. - (Holding answer 27 January 2003).

Answer: Dr. Tonge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many central and eastern European Roma he expects to migrate to the UK following the accession to the EU of (a) the Czech Republic, (b) Slovakia, (c) Hungary and (d) Poland. [93439] Beverley Hughes: [holding answer 27 January 2003]: Research conducted by University College London for the Home Office, which will be published soon, suggests that the numbers of people who will migrate to the UK from the new member states will not be significant. This research corroborates a number of other independent studies which have looked at the scale of migration flows after enlargement. These have been summarised in reports by the European Commission in 2000 and the former Department for Education and Employment in 1999. None of this research has been able to predict exact numbers expected from specific countries or ethnic groups to the UK.

Secondary information