asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many foreign national offenders have been released from secure hospitals in the past three years without being considered for deportation.[HL6884]

The information requested is not currently available. In my right honourable friend the Home Secretary's Written Ministerial Statement of 23 May 2006 (col. WS41), he explained that historically there have never been systematic arrangements in place for collecting information on the nationality of mentally disordered offenders, referring them to the Immigration and Nationality Directorate and considering them for deportation. He has tasked officials to construct arrangements for considering deportation where appropriate for people in this group, taking account of their very specific circumstances. In a Written Ministerial Statement of 19 July 2006 (col. WS98), my honourable friend the Minister of State for Immigration, Citizenship and Nationality (Liam Byrne) provided an update on the progress which has been made in dealing with the issue of mentally disordered offenders along with the other seven priority action areas in improving our overall effectiveness in deporting foreign national prisoners.