Published statistics shows that nine North Koreans were granted asylum within the requested period. However, we do not keep central records of the precise reasons asylum was granted by nationalities.

The Legal Aid Agency (LAA) holds this information for certain categories of legal aid. I will write to the hon. Member once the information has been identified.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

The great number of refugees entering Jordan on a daily basis is deeply concerning and I am acutely aware of the impact this could have on economic development in Jordan. Jordanian authorities have estimated spending close to $210 million on refugees in 2012 and host communities are also affected through overstretched public services, higher rents and commodity price increases. Jordan’s trade with neighbouring countries has also suffered, for instance with a 25% to 30% decline in agricultural trade with Syria. We welcome the Government of Jordan’s immense generosity in hosting the refugees and continuing to maintain an open border policy.

To date, the UK has provided over £26 million of funding in Jordan to mitigate the effects of the strain placed on the country by such high number of refugees. The UK is also providing assistance to Jordan through the Arab Partnership to support political and economic reform.

Asylum is not granted automatically nor can asylum claims be considered from abroad, particularly while the person remains within their country of origin, as set out in the Refugee Convention. Any asylum claim made in the UK will be considered on its individual merits and protection offered to those who are found to be at real risk of serious harm in Afghanistan.

The Government recognise the sensitivity of this issue and are currently looking very carefully at how we are going to make appropriate provision to support locally employed civilians as we draw down and eventually end our combat mission. We have a clear commitment to treat them fairly and appropriately, and to ensure their safety and security beyond the term of their employment with Her Majesty's Government.

To date the UK is providing £141.1 million in humanitarian aid to assist people affected by the crisis in Syria and the region. This funding is channelled through humanitarian partners, including UN agencies, non-governmental organisations

and humanitarian agencies operating on the ground in Syria. As well as providing support within Syria, we are targeting communities in neighbouring countries so that they are able to continue their generous efforts in hosting refugees.

£84.2 million of UK assistance is directed to Syria; £26.1 million to Jordan; £19.5 million to Lebanon; £6.3 million to Turkey; and £2.4 million to Iraq. A further £2.6 million is provided for the region as a whole, and used by humanitarian organisations to fill urgent funding gaps. In Syria and across the region, UK Aid is funding food for more than 147,000 people, drinking water for more than 76,000 people, and more than 178,000 medical consultations.

[holding answer 18 April 2013]: Three male individuals from Albania, Bangladesh and India were returned to their home countries respectively under the Assisted Voluntary Return (AVR) scheme on 31 December 2012 run by Refugee Action. There were no AVR's on 1 January 2011, 31 December 2011 or 1 January 2012.

The Home Office publishes quarterly and annual statistics on the number of persons removed or departed voluntarily from the UK within Immigration Statistics. The data on removals and voluntary departures are available in the latest release, Immigration Statistics: October to December 2012, tables rv.01 to rv.08, from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Science website at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-october-to-december-2012/immigration-statistics-october-to-december-2012

A total of 17 individuals in Camp Liberty have so far been referred by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to the Home Office for consideration of their re-admission to the UK as refugees. We are seeking further information about the progress of other cases which are being examined by the UNHCR.

The requested information is not readily available; individual case records show whether individuals are removed as a result of an asylum claim being refused, however, quantifying these records and providing management information would incur disproportionate cost.

The number of people removed or who departed voluntarily to Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan who had claimed asylum at some point since the beginning of 2004, the earliest date for which information has been published, is overleaf.

The Home Office publishes quarterly and annual statistics on the number of persons removed or who departed voluntarily from the UK. Data provided are published national statistics. The data on removals and voluntary departures by destination are available in the latest release of Immigration Statistics: October-December 2012, tables rv.06 and rv.06.q from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Statistics home page at GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-october-to-december-2012.

Destination as recorded on source database; all nationals returned to Afghanistan, Iran or Iraq.⁽²⁾ Removals are recorded on the system as at the dates on which the data extracts were taken.⁽³⁾ Recorded on the system as having claimed asylum at some point.^(P) Provisional figures. Figures will under record due to data cleansing and data matching exercises that take place after the extracts are taken.

Asylum seekers who are destitute can apply to the Home Office for support. The support usually consists of accommodation and a weekly allowance to meet the person's essential living needs. However, persons who have found their own accommodation, for example through friends or relatives, can apply for the weekly allowance only.

The table below sets out the current weekly allowances provided to asylum seekers and various categories of dependants that may also be supported.

In addition, asylum seekers who have young children aged between one and three years are eligible to receive an extra £3 per week per child. Children aged less than one year attract an extra £5 per week per child. Asylum seekers can also apply for a maternity payment of £300 to help with the costs arising from the birth of a child.

The Right First Time pilot was one of a number of recent initiatives in which the Home Office and refugee groups have worked together to make improvements to the asylum system.

Recommendations resulting from the pilot were not rolled out nationally following the conclusion of the pilot. However, findings from the project will be reviewed afresh in conjunction with the Early Legal Advice pilot evaluation, which is due to be published shortly. We will then consider whether further improvements can be made to the asylum system based on the lessons learnt and information gained from both pilots.

Information about the previous occupations of asylum applicants can be provided only by examining individual case records, which would incur disproportionate cost.

In 2009, the Comptroller and Auditor-General published Management of Asylum Applications by the UK Border Agency. This document assessed the performance of the UK Border Agency and, specifically, the performance of the New Asylum Model, which had been in place since 2007.

The document made 10 broad recommendations for change, supported by over 20 specific recommendations to the process, including better quality auditing of decisions; establishing targets for 12 and 24 month conclusions; improving removals; developing and establishing targets for average costs. At the time of publication these recommendations were evaluated by the UK Border Agency and implemented where appropriate.

The Home Office recognises that through listening to feedback we may improve our processes further. Indeed, since this report, the asylum system has been assessed by various other groups—most notably the independent chief inspector, John Vine. His 2011 report (link below) made several additional recommendations—the majority of which were accepted and implemented by the UK Border Agency.

http://icinspector.independent.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011 /02/Use-of-country-of-origin- information-in-deciding-asylum-applications.pdf.

Further, our performance is published every year against 15 key performance indicators (KPIs)—link below. These cover a wide variety of factors, including many of the recommendations from the 2009 report. Specifically:

asylum intake;

work in Progress (WiP) cases;

intake;

asylum support costs;

productivity;

asylum unit cost;

initial decisions in 30 days;

cases concluded in six months;

cases concluded in 12 months;

cases concluded in 35 months;

cases removed in 12 months;

decision quality;

appeal representation rate;

appeal win rate; and

asylum grant rate.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/aboutus/further-key-data/.

Overall, the published statistics show a system improving, with the majority of KPIs either exceeding or matching the previous year's figures. We are confident this trend will be repeated in this year's publication.

Going forward, the Asylum Casework Directorate is implementing several changes to simplify and standardise the asylum system—allowing for better, earlier identification of the needs of the claimant, including the most vulnerable, and enabling appropriate consideration by the correct team who specialise in their case type. This specialisation will then enable the development of country and subject expertise by decision-makers, resulting in faster, higher quality decisions.