Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have (1) to set out a timeline for the review of the Breathing Space scheme required by May 2026, and (2) to consult with debt advice providers such as Citizens Advice as part of that review.

Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Breathing Space scheme allows those in problem debt the space to engage with professional debt advice by providing a temporary relief from creditor enforcement action. Given the link between mental health and problem debt, the scheme also offers a separate entry route for eligible individuals receiving treatment for a mental health crisis.

As is standard for schemes of this nature, HM Treasury will carry out a five-year post implementation review of the scheme to consider its objectives and impact. More widely, the Government monitors the scheme’s operation to ensure it remains an effective tool for individuals and has regular engagement with debt advice providers as part of this.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact on nursing staff working in the adult social care sector of proposals to change the qualifying period for indefinite leave to remain.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

The earned settlement model, proposed in ‘A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, announced changes to the mandatory requirements and qualifying period for indefinite leave to remain. It is currently subject to a public consultation, running until 12 February 2026.

As part of this consultation, we are seeking views on the potential impact of the proposed changes on different groups, including those working in sectors such as social care. Details of the earned settlement model will be finalised following that consultation.

The final proposals will also be subject to full economic and equality impact assessments, which we have committed to publish in due course.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many people have been returned to France under the 'one in, one out' scheme; of these, how many were age-disputed persons; and how many of those selected for the scheme were age-disputed persons and have not been returned as a result of their age dispute.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

As of 3rd February, 305 people have been returned to France.

Removing minors to France is explicitly prohibited under Article 4(2)(d) of the Agreement.

Individuals are not removed to France where their age is in dispute, given the terms of the Treaty sets out that those removed will be individuals who have been determined to be an adult. We have recently seen several cases where migrants in this country are claiming to be children to prevent their removal. This can happen despite their having claimed to be an adult upon arrival in the country.

Operational details of the scheme are not disclosed outside of what has already been published as this may impact migrant behaviour or be exploited by organised crime gangs.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Lord Hanson of Flint on 27 January (HL Deb col 763), whether they will hear evidence from children and young people who are, or whose parents are, in the asylum and immigration system as part of their assessment of the children's right impacts of the asylum and earned settlement proposals.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

There were a variety of ways in which the voices of children and young people, or their parents, were included as we considered reform of the asylum and immigration system. The earned settlement model, proposed in A Fairer Pathway to Settlement, announced changes to the mandatory requirements and qualifying period for indefinite leave to remain. The public consultation on the Earned Settlement Proposals closed on 12 February.

In that consultation, we carefully considered the appropriate pathways for dependent children, and we expected a wide range of stakeholders to have contributed.

Separately, we considered the specific pathways for children in care and care leavers without status who were outside the scope of that consultation. We proposed that separate targeted engagement would take place with external stakeholders to understand the challenges and develop a policy solution. As part of that targeted engagement, we explored how we could engage the views of children or young adults with experience of the care system.

Work on pathways for unaccompanied asylum‑seeking children, as part of the asylum reforms, included consideration of how children’s perspectives could be taken into account.

We also considered the appropriate pathways for asylum‑seeking families with children and took into account their needs and vulnerabilities.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to the policy paper Restoring Order and Control, updated on 21 November 2025, whether the new core protection leave for refugees will apply to new arrivals only; and if not, which cohorts already in the UK will be affected.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

A person granted Core Protection will need to apply to renew their status every 30 months. We will encourage refugees to switch out of the Core Protection route wherever possible into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route.

While I am not able to provide specific details at the moment with regards to timings and cohorts, I can provide reassurance that we will carefully manage the transition into the new system and put in place transitional provisions to ensure that the offer remains clear and fair.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether, under the proposals in A Fairer Path to Settlement, they plan to introduce transitional protections to ensure that lawful residence already accrued under the long residence route will continue to count towards settlement for existing migrants, particularly those who have already accrued six or more years of residence and who would otherwise be eligible to apply for settlement from 2026 to 2030.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

The earned settlement public consultation ran for 12 weeks and closed on 12 February 2026. We are now reviewing and analysing all responses received. This analysis will help inform the development of the final earned settlement model, including consideration of any potential exemptions or transitional measures for those already on a pathway to settlement.

Once the final model has been decided, the Government will communicate the outcome publicly. As with all significant policy changes, the proposals will be subject to both economic impact assessments and equality impact assessments which we will publish as well as the Government’s response in due course.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of individuals with over six years of lawful residence who would face a reset of their qualifying period under the proposals if years spent on the Student, Graduate, High Potential Individual, Youth Mobility Scheme, or Tier 2 Intra Company Transfer routes are excluded from the baseline qualifying period.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

The consultation for the earned settlement model, as proposed in ‘A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, was open to the public between 20 November 2025 and 12 February 2026. Contributions will now be analysed, and the findings will support the development of the final model.

Once the final model has been decided, the Government will communicate the outcome publicly. As with all significant policy changes, the proposals will be subject to both economic impact assessments and equality impact assessments which we will publish as well as the Government’s response in due course.

The UK remains committed to meeting its international obligations.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the United Kingdom’s obligations under the Council of Europe’s Convention on Establishment, ratified by the UK in 1969, in relation to the rights of long term lawful residents; and how those obligations would be upheld if the long residence route is abolished or replaced under the proposed earned settlement system.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

The consultation for the earned settlement model, as proposed in ‘A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, was open to the public between 20 November 2025 and 12 February 2026. Contributions will now be analysed, and the findings will support the development of the final model.

Once the final model has been decided, the Government will communicate the outcome publicly. As with all significant policy changes, the proposals will be subject to both economic impact assessments and equality impact assessments which we will publish as well as the Government’s response in due course.

The UK remains committed to meeting its international obligations.