Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the number of people in Afghanistan who are eligible to claim asylum in the UK.

The UK has a proud record of providing protection for people who need it, in accordance with our obligations under the Refugee Convention and the European Convention on Human Rights. However, there is no provision within our Immigration Rules for someone to travel to the UK to seek asylum.

Whilst we sympathise with people in difficult situations around the world, we are not bound to consider asylum claims from the very large numbers of people overseas who might like to come here. Those who need international protection should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach – that is the fastest route to safety.

Our bespoke relocation and resettlement schemes for Afghan people are, however, providing safe and legal routes for those affected by events in Afghanistan to start new lives in the UK.

Any current or former staff who worked for, or with, the UK Government and are assessed to be at serious risk of threat to life are eligible to apply for the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP). So far we have relocated around 10,300 eligible Afghan citizens and their family members under the ARAP scheme since it opened in April 2021.