ISLAMABAD, Nov 4 The Foreign Office and a Senate body expressed apprehensions on Thursday over renewal of a memorandum of understanding between Pakistan and Britain for exchange of illegal immigrants. They described it as a 'tool' to target Pakistanis living in Britain.

The MoU, called 'Managed Migration', was signed by Interior Minister Rehman Malik and British Home Secretary Theresa May.

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and Secretary Salman Bashir expressed ignorance about the signing of the MoU and called British High Commissioner Adam Thomson to the Foreign Office over the issue.

Pakistan's high commissioner in London has been instructed to ensure that the rights of Pakistanis living there were safeguarded.

The Senate Standing Committee on Interior was stunned when the foreign secretary informed it on Thursday that the interior minister had involved the Foreign Office in signing the agreement. “We don't have any knowledge about it,” he said.

The committee was informed that the agreement was meant to safeguard the interests of the British government and so far 1,800 Pakistanis had been detained under it on charges of illegal migration.

Under the MoU, a joint judicial commission would be set up to decide the fate of those arrested for illegally living in the UK. Earlier, the MoU on illegal immigration was signed by the two countries on July 25, 2005. It lapsed last month.

Interior ministry sources said that after consultations between officials of the Federal Investigation Agency and the ministry it had been decided that the agreement should be extended.

According to a press release, Mr Thomson was informed about the apprehensions expressed by the standing committee that Pakistanis living in the UK were being targeted in the wake of the signing of the MoU.