Asked by: Lord Bishop of Chelmsford (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to work with the third sector to jointly create a comprehensive and properly funded transition process for people whose asylum support is due to end, to enable information and support around housing and benefits to be given as far in advance as possible.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Second Permanent Secretary and I recently met with the Bishop of London to discuss the Government support available to newly recognised refugees moving on from asylum accommodation.
Following the service of an asylum decision, an individual continues to be an asylum seeker for the purpose of asylum support until the end of the relevant prescribed period set out in legislation. This period is 28 calendar days from when an individual is notified of a decision to accept their asylum claim and grant them leave and we have no plans to extend this period. Whilst our legislative power is clear, we do in practice already extend support beyond this. Our current process means that individuals can remain on asylum support for at least 28 days after they have been issued a Biometric Residence Permit (BRP), which means that individuals have longer than 28 days to make arrangements to move on before their asylum support ends. It is important that individuals initiate plans to move on from asylum support as soon as they are served their asylum decision in order to maximise the time they have to make move on arrangements.
We offer move on support to all individuals through Migrant Help or their partner organisation. This includes providing advice on accessing the labour market, on applying for Universal Credit and signposting to local authorities for assistance with housing. Individuals do not need to wait for their BRP to make a claim for benefits and are encouraged to do so as early as possible if they require them.
We continue to identify and make efficiencies in supporting newly recognised refugees during the move on period and to mitigate the risk of homelessness. We are fully committed to working with partners in doing this. We have already worked closely with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) to ensure the right asylum decision data is being shared with local authorities to enable effective planning and to lessen the impact on existing homelessness and rough sleeping pressures. We are also utilising Home Office Liaison Officers to replicate part of the Afghan resettlement move on process. We have been working in three local authority areas since December 2023; Glasgow, Brent and Hillingdon. This has now been expanded to Manchester and Liverpool.
Asked by: Lord Hay of Ballyore (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many (1) asylum seekers, and (2) other migrants are being housed in hotel-style accommodation; and how much financial support they are providing in support of these arrangements.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Data on the number of supported asylum seekers in accommodation (including in contingency hotels and other contingency accommodation) is published in table Asy_D11 here: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Data on other immigration groups is published in table Reg_01 of the Regional and local authority data. This includes the number of people accommodated in interim accommodation as part of the Afghan Resettlement Programme.
The standard weekly allowance is £49.18 for each supported asylum seeker in self-catered accommodation and £8.86 for each supported asylum seeker in catered accommodation. Further information on what support asylum seekers receive can be found in the attached link: https://www.gov.uk/asylum-support/what-youll-get.
Individuals on our resettlement schemes with Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) in the UK have access to mainstream benefits and services to enable their integration; and we are working across Government to ensure these services meet the needs of refugees.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will take steps to ensure that women who are held in police cells are supported by at least one officer who is a woman.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government is committed to ensuring that custody is a safe and dignified environment for all detainees, visitors and staff which operates professionally, respectfully and lawfully.
Police custody is governed by the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) Codes of Practice which sets out the legal framework for the detention, treatment and questioning of persons by police officers. PACE Code C requires that as soon as practicable after arrival at the police station, each detainee must be given an opportunity to speak in private with a member of custody staff of the same sex as them about any matter concerning their personal needs relating to their health, hygiene and welfare that might affect or concern them whilst in custody. Arrangements must also be made for ensuring that a girl under the age of 18 is placed under the care of a female member of staff.
As policing is operationally independent of Government, Chief Constables and elected Police and Crime Commissioners are responsible for the operational management of custody suites.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons he used a private charter flight for his visit to Rwanda in December 2023; and whether his Department made an assessment of the potential merits of using alternative forms of transport.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson - Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
All Government spend goes through thorough due diligence to ensure best value for money.
Stopping the boats is one of our top priorities. The cost of the asylum system could reach up to £11 billion per year by 2026, so bold solutions like our partnership with Rwanda are required.
Various elements, such as security and timing, will be taken into consideration when looking at Government travel, including use of the Government’s plane.
On the visit, the Home Secretary signed a joint treaty with his counterpart, Foreign Minister Dr Vincent Biruta, strengthening the UK and Rwanda’s Migration and Economic Development Partnership and directly addressing the concerns of the Supreme Court.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department takes to assess the (a) potential impact and (b) value for money of (i) his visit to Rwanda in December 2023 and (ii) other ministerial overseas visits.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson - Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
All Government spend goes through thorough due diligence to ensure best value for money.
Stopping the boats is one of our top priorities. The cost of the asylum system could reach up to £11 billion per year by 2026, so bold solutions like our partnership with Rwanda are required.
Various elements, such as security and timing, will be taken into consideration when looking at Government travel, including use of the Government’s plane.
On the visit, the Home Secretary signed a joint treaty with his counterpart, Foreign Minister Dr Vincent Biruta, strengthening the UK and Rwanda’s Migration and Economic Development Partnership and directly addressing the concerns of the Supreme Court.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department plans to provide funding to Women's Aid in the next three financial years.
Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
Tackling violence against women and girls is a government priority. Our strategies aim to transform the whole of society’s response to these crimes with actions to prevent abuse, support victims and ensure more perpetrators are bought to justice.
The Home Office has provided funding to Women’s Aid of up to £1.34m until March 2025 to deliver the Flexible Fund. This fund will help hundreds of domestic abuse victims next year who will receive lifeline payments to help escape tormenting and often life-threatening abuse, providing the chance to rebuild their lives. We are also investing £753k into Women’s Aid next year to improve the awareness of domestic abuse amongst young people.
Funding beyond March 2025 is subject to future budgets which will be set through the next Spending Review process.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will issue guidance to the police on ensuring that people providing statements are asked whether they have had their drink spiked.
Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
The Home Office does not intend to issue guidance as described, as it would not be appropriate for such a question to be asked to all individuals providing statements to the police.
All incidents are taken seriously by the police, and officers will always seek to follow relevant lines of enquiry. The questions asked by the police will therefore be specific to the circumstances of each particular incident, including the individual’s version of events.
If there is anything to indicate that there is an element of spiking it will be fully investigated.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what training is provided to police officers on the impact of the spiking of drinks on victims of that crime.
Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
Each Police force has a dedicated spiking lead who all meet regularly to share learning. At present, forces design and deliver their own spiking training and this is informed by NPCC and Home Office policies.
Some forces, including Cumbria Police and the Metropolitan Police Service, are in the process of reviewing their spiking training.
Asked by: Lord Allan of Hallam (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many (1) fathers, and (2) mothers, were required to provide additional consent from the other parent when applying for passports for their children in 2023, and was the total number of applicants in each group.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
There are circumstances when additional consent is needed for a passport application. This includes where there is a change of name for a child, or where one parent is attempting to declare a child’s valid passport as lost that the other parent had applied for. Further information can be found at GOV.UK: Authorisation and consent: needed to issue a passport - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Data relating to the number of fathers and mothers that were required to provide additional consent from the other parent for passport applications in 2023 is not held in a reportable format.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of redefining criminality rules for British National (Overseas) visa applications.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Part 9 of the Immigration Rules, in relation to criminality and other adverse behaviour, apply to applications to the British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) route. All applications are carefully assessed against the latest country information. Guidance for caseworkers provides flexibility to ensure that overseas convictions and offences not recognised in the UK do not result in the automatic refusal of an application.
Following representations from stakeholders, we are considering whether the current approach to criminality remains appropriate given the situation in Hong Kong.