TNAG-1802-FCO40-2562-Hong-Kong-Vietnamese-refugees-resettlement-in-the-UK-1988 — Page 207

immigration officials.

Most of the more skilled refugees have,

of course, left Hong Kong some time ago so it would be difficult

and would give the wrong signals to go further towards an

exclusively skills based package at this stage.

11. We have in the past had problems with resettling boat people

here and those problems are not going to disappear entirely; we

anticipate for example that some housing agencies will be hard

pressed to find accommodation for the new intake. However with

initial selection of refugees on the basis proposed, we think

that an expansion of existing language training programmes

provided in camps in Hong Kong and, after arrival in the UK, good

linkages into the new Employment Training Programme (which

provides individual assessments and training programmes to

enhance the employment and self employment prospects of those

using it) can reduce previous difficulties.

12. In terms of resources we estimate that up to an additional

in each year

exisme

£0.5 million/will be needed from the Home Office for grant aid to

voluntary organisations working with these refugees. Obviously

they will also use the statutory services on the basis of need

but actual refugee uptake of services is not monitored by either

service providers or the Home Office. We obtain only very

generalised pictures of the circumstances of refugees in this

country from voluntary organisations working with them.

new arrwalseach

However

at a rate of only 480 per year the burden falling on any one

Moreover

service is likely to be containable. Alse the current package of

for

proposals aims to improve prospects of self sufficiency and thus

enable an early contribution to the economy to be made.