Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the recommendations by Women for Refugee Women for the use of support and engagement in the asylum process as a means of reducing the use of immigration detention, contained in the report <i>The Way Ahead; an asylum system without detention</i>, published on 1 March.

We note the recommendations in the report.

Detention is used sparingly, especially in the case of those who have claimed asylum. The overwhelming majority of asylum claimants remain in the community whilst their cases are considered. Only a very small minority of asylum claimants are detained whilst their case is considered and this is normally where they have claimed asylum after already having been detained for removal.