Keith Vaz said: “The decisions made to centralise visa services in South Asia, which has led to the removal of all visa decision making powers from Dhaka, Bangladesh, and downsize services in Mumbai, India, have been widely lambasted.
The petitioners have expressed concerns that this will significantly delay visa applications in both countries, and any human interaction or face-to-face interviews are being increasingly removed from the application process, to the detriment of both the applicant and the UK.
In stark contrast, the Indian government recently announced that it would be opening 14 visa application centres throughout the United Kingdom. After opening the new full-time centre in Leicester, I certainly view this as a positive move which will provide a convenient and effective service for people across the United Kingdom.
I hope the government will address the concerns of the petitioners, and perhaps learn some lessons from our friends in India.”
