Charlotte Leslie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Charlotte Leslie on 2016-02-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate her Department has made of the number of asylum claimants whose asylum claim has been refused, but who cannot be legally deported because their destination country is deemed unsafe (a) in each of the last five years and (b) in the most recent period for which figures are available.

James Brokenshire

We do not routinely collect such statistics. Each asylum case is considered on its individual merits. Where it is accepted that an individual would face persecution in their country of origin or it would be otherwise unsafe for them to return, some form of protection would normally be granted in the UK. If protection is not granted, then whether or not removal can be enforced, we expect failed asylum seekers to return home. The Home Office closely monitors developments in all countries of return and will take decisions on a case-by-case basis in the light of international obligations and the latest available country information. Generally, there are no countries to which, as a matter of immigration policy, we cannot remove. However there may be some countries where at any one time it is difficult practically to undertake enforced removals.