Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the suicide bombing resulting in the death of 19 Sikhs in Jalalabad, Afghanistan in July, whether they intend to offer asylum in the UK to the families of those who were killed.

There is no provision in the Immigration Rules for people to be allowed to travel to the UK to seek asylum. Those who need international protection should claim in the first safe country they reach – that is the fastest route to safety.

Our resettlement schemes offer a safe and legal route to the UK for the most vulnerable refugees. Membership of a minority religion or group is not in itself one of the vulnerability criteria used to assess eligibility for resettlement but members of minority religions or groups may qualify under the established criteria.

Our assessment of the situation for Sikhs in Afghanistan is set out in the relevant country policy and information note, which is available on the Gov.uk website https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/afghanistan-country-policy-and-information-notes.