Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of people who are eligible for resettlement under pathway three of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme; what steps he is taking to contact outstanding individuals assessed as being eligible in principle; and if he will reopen the process for Expressions of Interest from other eligible individuals.

Under the first stage of ACRS Pathway 3 the FCDO received over 11,450 expressions of interest (EOIs). Each has been assessed against the eligibility criteria and the FCDO has communicated an outcome to all individuals who expressed an interest. We have informed over 380 individuals that they are eligible in principle for resettlement, subject to passing security checks. With their dependents, we have notified over 1800 individuals that they are eligible in principle.

We have no plans to reopen the EOI window for the first stage of ACRS Pathway 3. In the second stage of Pathway 3, the UK government will work with international partners and NGOs to welcome wider groups of Afghans at risk. We are not able to open for referrals at this present time. Our immediate focus is ensuring the resettlement of those eligible in the first stage of Pathway 3, which includes individuals who directly supported the UK and international community's efforts in Afghanistan.