The following table shows the number of child asylum seekers, including dependants, removed or voluntarily departed from the UK in 2006, 2007 and 2008.
Published statistics on immigration and asylum are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate website at:
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration-asylum-stats.html
Number of departures4 2006 20075 20085 Total child asylum cases 1,645 905 705 1 Persons recorded as being under 18 on the date of their departure from the UK. 2 Persons who had sought asylum at some stage, including dependants. 3 Includes persons departing voluntarily after notifying the UK Border Agency of their intention to leave prior to their departure, persons leaving under Assisted Voluntary Return Programmes run by the International Organization for Migration and persons who it has been established left the UK without informing the immigration authorities. 4 Removals and voluntary departures recorded on the system as at the dates on which the data extracts were taken. 5 Provisional figures.