Infectious Diseases: Undocumented Migrants
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 21 July 2025 to Question 67468 on Diseases: Undocumented Migrants, what information her Department holds on the number of irregular migrants who were found to have an infectious disease upon arrival in each of the last three years.
Answered by Ashley Dalton
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) does not routinely collect or hold data on communicable disease by visa status for new arrivals to the United Kingdom. However, if an outbreak occurs, data associated with outbreak cases may be collected.
There was an outbreak of diphtheria among this group in 2022 and 2023. Monthly data on these cases is published by UKHSA and is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/diphtheria-cases-among-asylum-seekers-in-england-2022/diphtheria-cases-among-asylum-seekers-in-england-weekly-data-tables
No cases were reported in 2024, and two cases have been confirmed so far in 2025.
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