Lord Geddes
Main Page: Lord Geddes (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)Department Debates - View all Lord Geddes's debates with the Home Office
(11 years, 8 months ago)
Lords ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Lord Taylor of Holbeach
We are trying to make the visa application process as customer-friendly as we can. The form itself is available in Chinese so that applicants can complete it in Chinese and online. We are dealing with a real issue. Either we have visa controls or we do not. I am sure that this House would not suggest to Her Majesty’s Government that we drop visa controls. Indeed, we review visa controls, but for China we require them. The most important thing is that we have a system in place that reflects the interests of this country in protecting its borders and the interests of those who want to come here. They will be welcome for business, tourism and indeed for study.
Lord Geddes
In his first Answer to my noble friend Lord Lee, the Minister gave statistics for the number of visas issued. To what extent was that split between those from Hong Kong and those from mainland China?