Clause 16 - Asylum-seeker: definition
Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Bill
10:15 am
Mr Simon Hughes (North Southwark and Bermondsey, Liberal Democrat)
It is obvious that I support amendment No. 130. I hope that the Minister will accept it. She has said before that papers can get stuck in the post, and it is nonsense that an application should have to wait until it is recorded. There are rules for determining when a claim is made, and they need to be made even more specific.
I am sympathetic to amendment No. 131. The hon. Member for Woking is well motivated, and I will be interested to hear what the Minister has to say.
Amendment No. 172 has its origin in the Immigration Law Practitioners Association. Sometimes, when asylum applications are been determined negatively, some categories of people—the Minister hinted at them earlier—are not able to leave the United Kingdom immediately. Perhaps things have changed in their country, and it is understandable that they cannot go back there. It is important to ensure that such people receive support; they should not suddenly be left destitute when, through no fault of theirs, they are unable to return or to be sent back where they come from—or even somewhere else.
I hope that the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department will respond positively. I am happy to work with her on the drafting if a different form of words is needed. I hope that the Government will accept the point.