Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will investigate trends in the number of applications for asylum from people from (a) Pakistan and (b) Bangladesh who are falsely claiming to be gay and in fear for their lives if returned to their home country.

Where we encounter abuse of the asylum system, we take action. Protection status will be revoked where evidence emerges that it was obtained by deception.

All asylum and human rights claims, including those raised by Pakistan and Bangladesh nationals on grounds of sexuality or gender identity are carefully considered on their individual merits in accordance with our international obligations. Our guidance for considering asylum claims is available on GOV.UK at: Assessing credibility and refugee status: caseworker guidance - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

A decision maker will not accept that someone is gay simply because they claim to be so. Such declarations constitute the starting point in the consideration process and are subject to probing at interview and a proper assessment of the facts and circumstances.

Each individual assessment is made against the background of relevant case law and the latest available country of origin information. Our assessment of the situation of a given group in a given country is set out in the relevant country policy and information note, which is available on GOV.UK at: www.gov.uk/government/collections/country-policy-and-information-notes.