Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Home Office guidance, Funding Instruction for Local Authorities: Asylum Grant 2025 - 2026, updated 23 April 2025, how many councils are participating in the LA-led asylum accommodation pilots.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Asylum Grant supports local authorities with a contribution to the costs and pressures of accommodating asylum seekers across all eligible accommodation types through a baseline payment of £1,200 per occupied bedspace and quarterly growth payments of £100 per net growth in newly occupied bedspaces. This grant started in 2021/22 and has been renewed yearly with the approval of HM Treasury. There is no unique link between this and local authority-led asylum accommodation pilots. No decisions have yet been made on which local authorities will participate in asylum accommodation pilots.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether (a) combined authorities and (b) the Mayor of London are participating in asylum accommodation pilots; and what role they have in asylum accommodation under proposed reforms.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Responsibility for the provision of asylum support and accommodation remains with the Secretary of State for the Home Department, and any pilot models have been designed to be delivered through local authorities. Strategic authorities, including combined authorities and the Mayor of London, may support local coordination where appropriate but have no formal delivery role.
Asked by: Liz Jarvis (Liberal Democrat - Eastleigh)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the 2024–25 Health and Care Worker visa changes on access to domiciliary and residential care services; how many social care providers have had their sponsorship licences (a) suspended and (b) revoked in the past 24 months; and what proportion of those workers were left without a viable route to remain in social care employment.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government published the immigration white paper ‘Restoring control over the immigration system' last year which set out how we will move the UK away from a dependence on international care workers and end overseas recruitment for social care visas. The new immigration rules which prohibit overseas recruitment took effect in July 2025, however transitional arrangements exist for individuals already in the UK to switch into the route. The transitional arrangements are due to expire in 2028 but will be subject to regular review.
The Home Office continues to work closely with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC)-funded Regional Partnerships to support care workers, who have been impacted by exploitative employers. DHSC are funding 15 regional hubs in England, made up of Local Authorities and Directors of Adult Social Services, working together to support displaced workers into new roles within the care sector. These regional hubs have received £12.5 million this financial year to support them to prevent and respond to unethical practices in the sector.
The Government remains committed to supporting Health & Care visa holders who wish to pursue a career in the adult social care sector.
The impact assessment for the changes made in 2024 and 2025 can be found at the following links:
The Home Office does not publish revocation data broken down by business type. As a result, the specific information requested is not available within existing published statistics. Collating and verifying the relevant data solely for the purpose of this request would incur disproportionate cost.
However, the Home Office does publish general information on visa sponsors who are subject to suspension or revocation in available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/migration-transparency-data
Asked by: Baroness Benjamin (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the report by Birthmark of Africa, The Windrush Justice Inquiry Report, Towards Justice: Truth, Accountability, and Repair, published in June 2025, which found that the current readdress scheme fails to meet international standards of justice and restitution, what assessment have they made of launching a public inquiry into the Windrush scandal.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government is committed to righting the wrongs of the Home Office Windrush Scandal. Our focus is very much on delivering real change for those impacted by Windrush. We have delivered on our manifesto commitment by appointing Rev Clive Foster as the independent Windrush Commissioner, who has undertaken significant engagement with the Windrush generation and key stakeholders, and is acting as a trusted voice for the Windrush community.
The Windrush Unit has been reestablished and is in the final stages of reviewing all 30 recommendations of the Windrush Lessons Learned Review. We have also worked with the Windrush Commissioner to make improvements to the Compensation Scheme.
The causes of the Home Office Windrush Scandal and the Home Office’s response thereafter have been the subject to several investigations and inquiries by a range of public bodies including extensive parliamentary scrutiny.
Alongside the independent Windrush Lessons Learned Review and the Historical Roots of the Windrush Scandal research report, both commissioned by the Home Office and published, parliamentary committees including the Home Affairs Select Committee and the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights have conducted their own investigations. Further public bodies such as the National Audit Office and the Equality and Human Rights Commission have published their findings and recommendations into the scandal. These reports have approached the issues from different perspectives, reflecting the specialisms of the different bodies.
Given that there have been numerous reviews we do not believe a public inquiry would add to the scrutiny and understanding of the Home Office Windrush Scandal, rather it would divert critical resources away from ensuring meaningful change is achieved.
We will continue to work to rebuild trust with the Windrush generation, and ensure that justice is delivered.
Asked by: Baroness Benjamin (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government to what extent they have implemented the recommendations made by the independent review by Wendy Williams, Windrush Lessons Learned Review, published in March 2020; and whether they plan to provide an update on implementation.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government is committed to righting the wrongs of the Home Office Windrush Scandal. Our focus is very much on delivering real change for those impacted by Windrush. We have delivered on our manifesto commitment by appointing Rev Clive Foster as the independent Windrush Commissioner, who has undertaken significant engagement with the Windrush generation and key stakeholders, and is acting as a trusted voice for the Windrush community.
The Windrush Unit has been reestablished and is in the final stages of reviewing all 30 recommendations of the Windrush Lessons Learned Review. We have also worked with the Windrush Commissioner to make improvements to the Compensation Scheme.
The causes of the Home Office Windrush Scandal and the Home Office’s response thereafter have been the subject to several investigations and inquiries by a range of public bodies including extensive parliamentary scrutiny.
Alongside the independent Windrush Lessons Learned Review and the Historical Roots of the Windrush Scandal research report, both commissioned by the Home Office and published, parliamentary committees including the Home Affairs Select Committee and the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights have conducted their own investigations. Further public bodies such as the National Audit Office and the Equality and Human Rights Commission have published their findings and recommendations into the scandal. These reports have approached the issues from different perspectives, reflecting the specialisms of the different bodies.
Given that there have been numerous reviews we do not believe a public inquiry would add to the scrutiny and understanding of the Home Office Windrush Scandal, rather it would divert critical resources away from ensuring meaningful change is achieved.
We will continue to work to rebuild trust with the Windrush generation, and ensure that justice is delivered.
Asked by: Baroness Benjamin (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they expect to implement the recommendations made by the independent review by Wendy Williams, Windrush Lessons Learned Review, in full.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government is committed to righting the wrongs of the Home Office Windrush Scandal. Our focus is very much on delivering real change for those impacted by Windrush. We have delivered on our manifesto commitment by appointing Rev Clive Foster as the independent Windrush Commissioner, who has undertaken significant engagement with the Windrush generation and key stakeholders, and is acting as a trusted voice for the Windrush community.
The Windrush Unit has been reestablished and is in the final stages of reviewing all 30 recommendations of the Windrush Lessons Learned Review. We have also worked with the Windrush Commissioner to make improvements to the Compensation Scheme.
The causes of the Home Office Windrush Scandal and the Home Office’s response thereafter have been the subject to several investigations and inquiries by a range of public bodies including extensive parliamentary scrutiny.
Alongside the independent Windrush Lessons Learned Review and the Historical Roots of the Windrush Scandal research report, both commissioned by the Home Office and published, parliamentary committees including the Home Affairs Select Committee and the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights have conducted their own investigations. Further public bodies such as the National Audit Office and the Equality and Human Rights Commission have published their findings and recommendations into the scandal. These reports have approached the issues from different perspectives, reflecting the specialisms of the different bodies.
Given that there have been numerous reviews we do not believe a public inquiry would add to the scrutiny and understanding of the Home Office Windrush Scandal, rather it would divert critical resources away from ensuring meaningful change is achieved.
We will continue to work to rebuild trust with the Windrush generation, and ensure that justice is delivered.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have for the provision of accommodation for women and children seeking asylum who are awaiting a decision on their claims once they are moved out of hotel accommodation.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Home Office officials keep the asylum accommodation estate under continual review. As part of this estate management, operational adjustments are made on an ongoing basis to ensure sufficient and suitable capacity is maintained to meet expected levels of demand.
As the department reduces its reliance on hotel accommodation, individuals and families, including women and children, are moved into more appropriate longer‑term forms of asylum accommodation within the existing estate. This includes dispersal accommodation and, where required, other contingency arrangements that meet the necessary standards for safety and suitability.
The Home Office is committed to ensuring that destitute asylum seekers are provided with safe, secure and appropriate accommodation, and that they are treated with dignity throughout the asylum process.
In line with the Allocation of Accommodation policy, accommodation is offered on a no‑choice basis across the United Kingdom. Where an individual has specific, acute needs that require them to be accommodated in a particular area, established processes supported by Migrant Help and asylum support casework teams are in place to consider such circumstances.
Asked by: Iqbal Mohamed (Independent - Dewsbury and Batley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with regard to the Animals in Science Regulation Unit Annual Report 2024, published in December 2025, how the number of unannounced audits in 2024 compares with previous years; and whether she she is taking to help increase the number of unannounced audits in future years.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The numbers of unannounced audits conducted are reported in the published Animals in Science Regulation Unit (ASRU) Annual Reports.
Year | Number of unannounced audits |
2024 | 10 |
2023 | 14 |
2022 | 10 |
The Annual Report for 2024 can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/animals-in-science-regulation-unit-annual-report-2024
ASRU has planned to increase the number of unannounced audits as part of its work to strength regulatory oversight. ASRU has also increased its number of inspectors, enabling a greater volume of risk-based audits across the system.
Announced and unannounced audits play an important role in providing regulatory assurance. Audit numbers are only one indicator of the level of regulatory oversight; the quality, depth and scope of audits are central to assessing compliance effectively.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to Final Police Funding Settlement (England and Wales) 2026-27, how much funding her Department has specifically provided for violence reduction units in the 2026-27 financial year.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
Violence prevention is crucial to achieving our ambition of halving knife crime and making our streets safer.
The 2026/27 Police Funding Settlement included an allocation of £66.6m for Serious Violence Reduction Programmes.
This funding will be used to maintain our network of 20 Violence Reduction Units (VRUs) in the areas of England and Wales which are experiencing over 80% of knife crime; support public sector bodies to fulfil their statutory requirements under the Serious Violence Duty and continue the promising work of the Young Futures Panel pilots, which are identifying young people at risk of being drawn into crime and intervening earlier with positive, diversionary support.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of current processes for handling incidents involving harassment, alarm or distress motivated by homophobia where relevant evidence cannot be admitted or relied upon in court; and what steps she is taking to ensure that such cases are still appropriately investigated and that victims receive adequate protection and support.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
On the 14th February, the government tabled an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill to extend existing aggravated offences under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 to ensure equal protection across the protected characteristics of race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, transgender identity and sex.
The police are operationally independent and responsible for investigating alleged offences, working closely with the Crown Prosecution Service to build cases that meet the evidential and public interest tests. A range of offences may apply depending on the circumstances, including under the Public Order Act 1986 and the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, and where hostility based on sexual orientation is proven, courts may apply statutory sentencing uplifts.
Where particular evidence cannot be admitted or relied upon in court, the police are expected to pursue all reasonable lines of enquiry using admissible material, and to seek early investigative advice from the Crown Prosecution Service where appropriate. Where the evidential threshold for a charge is not met, the police can still take steps to protect victims, including the use of bail conditions and other protective measures where the relevant legal tests are satisfied.
Victims of hate crime are entitled to support under the Victims’ Code, including being kept informed of progress and signposted to appropriate services. The Government continues to fund local and national victim support services and works closely with policing partners, the Crown Prosecution Service and the College of Policing to promote consistent, evidence-led responses to hate-motivated incidents so that victims are protected and offenders are brought to justice wherever possible.