Written question asked by Baroness Brown of Silvertown (Labour) on Thursday, 9 November 2023, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 13 November 2023. It was answered by Andrew Mitchell (Conservative) on Thursday, 16 November 2023 on behalf of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

Eritrea: Refugees

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate he has made of how many (a) adult and (b) unaccompanied child Eritrean nationals eligible to come to the UK are unable to exit Ethiopia; and how many such people are receiving consular support from the UK.

Answer: The Home Office are working with the International Committee of the Red Cross to process 16 Eritrean Nationals who hold UK visas and are trying to exit Ethiopia, 10 of whom are unaccompanied minors, to enable them to travel to the UK as soon as their exit visas are granted. The FCDO and our embassies, high commissions and consulates worldwide provide consular assistance to British nationals abroad. We cannot provide consular support to other countries' nationals, even if they have been living legally in the UK or have close connections to the UK.

Secondary information