asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) if he will publish the number, and breakdown by nationality, of those persons seeking political asylum in the United Kingdom who were detained on 1 February, or the nearest convenient date;(2) if he will provide a table indicating the period of time spent in detention by persons seeking asylum in the United Kingdom, who were detained on 1 February, or nearest convenient date showing numbers detained for not more than
(a) one, (b) two, (c) three, (d) four, (e) five, (f) six months and (g) for six months or more, respectively.
Information is readily available only in respect of persons claiming asylum on arrival in the United Kingdom. On 1 March there were 160 such persons in detention. Their nationalities were as follows:
| Number | |
| Sri Lankan | 101 |
| Iranian | 33 |
| Ethiopian | 12 |
| Indian | 4 |
| Somalian | 3 |
| Afghani | 1 |
| Chilean | 1 |
| Ghanaian | 1 |
| Pakistani | 1 |
| Turkish | 1 |
| Stateless | 2 |
| Number | |
| Not more than 1 month | 68 |
| Over 1 month but not more than 2 | 30 |
| Over 2 months but not more than 3 | 29 |
| Over 3 months but not more than 4 | 16 |
| Over 4 months but not more than 5 | 6 |
| Over 5 months but not more than 6 | 2 |
| Over 6 months | 9 |