TNAG-1801-FCO40-2561-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-resettlement-in-the-UK-1988 — Page 53

CONFIDENTIAL

(ii) an additional quota which might be drawn from the following

categories:

(a) "UK refusal cases"

(b) long-stayers;

(c) refugees selected on the basis of skills;

(d) refugees sponsored by organisations or individuals. Resettlement under this heading would begin now and run at an additional 10 a month until resettlement under (i) is

exhausted, and thereafter at 30 a month;

At the resettlement rate we have in mind (a steady 30 a month), resettlement would stretch over about 3 years, until end of 1991.

9. Such a package contains some attractive elements:

Would be a commitment which effectively ran throughout the

remaining life of the present Parliament;

-

Inclusion of some 'long stayers' (some of whom have been in closed camps for about 6 years) would be particularly welcomed by UNHCR and other pro-refugee groups.

Inclusion of some refugees with special skills (which would enable them to integrate more easily in society here) would lessen burden on reception facilities.

Inclusion of sponsored refugees would tap the willingness of private individuals and groups to make a contribution.

Defensive Points

10.

(Numbers proposed are much higher than those put to Mr Renton by Lord Glenarthur in March): Yes. But scale of problem has grown since them. Moreover present proposal envisages same rate of resettlement as before, but over longer period.

11.

(Reception facilities could not cope): rate of resettlement would be 30 per month, compared with 20 per month under existing (May 1987) commitment and 40 per month under previous commitment. Cannot believe that this would swamp reception facilities.

12.

(Can we be sure that other resettlement countries would follow

suit?): US have hinted that a new commitment by us of this size

would meet with a correspondingly generous response. We would negotiate energetically to secure matching bids from others.

CONFIDENTIAL