Asked by: Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what action the Department of International Development is taking to (1) protect girls from trafficking and exploitation in crises, and (2) provide support for survivors of trafficking.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
Since 2017 the UK Government has more than doubled UK Aid investment to tackle modern slavery and human trafficking to over £200 million. DFID programmes seek to tackle the root causes of modern slavery and human trafficking by addressing the permissive environments which allow slavery to exist and supporting the most vulnerable to escape slavery – particularly children, women and girls.
For example, we have reached over 380,000 women and girls through our flagship £10 million Work in Freedom Programme, which aims to reduce vulnerability to trafficking and the forced labour of women and girls in South Asia and Arab States.
DFID’s Strategic Vision on Gender Equality sets out our ambition to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls during emergencies, when the challenges and needs are particularly acute. We have increased our resources and expanded our programmes to tackle violence against women and girls in more than 30 countries.
Full details of current programmes can be found at https://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk.
Asked by: Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much UK Official Development Assistance expenditure will be invested in development and humanitarian support in Iraq; and through which organisations that support will be directed.
Answered by Lord Bates
DFID has committed £252.5 million in humanitarian support to Iraq since 2014, providing a vital lifeline to millions with shelter, medical care and clean water. The largest recipient of UK aid has been UN OCHA's Iraq Humanitarian Pooled Fund (IHF), which distributes funding to downstream partners in line with the Iraq Humanitarian Response Plan 2019.
The UK has committed over £103 million towards stabilisation in Iraq since 2015, through the Conflict Security and Stabilisation Fund. The largest recipient of this funding is the UNDP’s Funding Facility for Stabilisation (FFS), which helps stabilise areas liberated from Daesh by repairing infrastructure and reopening vital facilities such as hospitals and schools.
This year, £16 million has also been allocated from DFID's ODA budget to the Iraq Reform and Reconstruction Fund (IRRF), run by the World Bank. The IRRF will support Government of Iraq-led reconstruction efforts through the provision of technical assistance, and support the implementation of longer-term economic reform and development.
Plans for Official Development Aid expenditure in Iraq in the 2019/20 financial year are still to be confirmed.
Asked by: Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much financial support, if any, they plan to provide for psychological services to those members of the Yazidi community captured by ISIS and now returned to Iraq.
Answered by Lord Bates
UK humanitarian support is distributed on the basis of need, to ensure civilians are not discriminated against on the grounds of race, religion or ethnicity. However, we remain concerned about appalling crimes committed against minorities in Syria and Iraq, including the Yezidi community. We expect our partners, including the UN and NGOs which implement our aid programmes, to ensure they are doing all they can to support the most vulnerable people, including those who have suffered religious persecution.
In Iraq, UK aid is primarily delivered through UN OCHA's Iraq Humanitarian Pooled Fund (IHF), to which the UK was the largest donor in 2018. The IHF is the main international humanitarian mechanism in Iraq and health - including psychosocial support - is its largest component. Work to provide healthcare services to 1.2 million more people this year, including Yezidis, has already begun. UK aid has also enabled the UN Trust Fund to support the Free Yezidi Foundation which runs a centre in Northern Iraq providing access to a psychologist and a trauma programme for women and children who have suffered under Daesh. The UK is providing £75,000 in support to the SEED Foundation which delivers gender-focused mental health and psycho-social support training in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. This work will benefit women from many communities across the Kurdistan Region, including Yezidis.
In Syria, UK aid has provided more than £40 million this financial year to support the most vulnerable people in areas liberated from Daesh. Across Northeast Syria, this includes mental health support, child protection and education, support to demining and assisting survivors of Gender-Based Violence.
Asked by: Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much financial support, if any, they plan to provide for psychological services to those members of the Yazidi community captured by ISIS and now located in Syria.
Answered by Lord Bates
UK humanitarian support is distributed on the basis of need, to ensure civilians are not discriminated against on the grounds of race, religion or ethnicity. However, we remain concerned about appalling crimes committed against minorities in Syria and Iraq, including the Yezidi community. We expect our partners, including the UN and NGOs which implement our aid programmes, to ensure they are doing all they can to support the most vulnerable people, including those who have suffered religious persecution.
In Iraq, UK aid is primarily delivered through UN OCHA's Iraq Humanitarian Pooled Fund (IHF), to which the UK was the largest donor in 2018. The IHF is the main international humanitarian mechanism in Iraq and health - including psychosocial support - is its largest component. Work to provide healthcare services to 1.2 million more people this year, including Yezidis, has already begun. UK aid has also enabled the UN Trust Fund to support the Free Yezidi Foundation which runs a centre in Northern Iraq providing access to a psychologist and a trauma programme for women and children who have suffered under Daesh. The UK is providing £75,000 in support to the SEED Foundation which delivers gender-focused mental health and psycho-social support training in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. This work will benefit women from many communities across the Kurdistan Region, including Yezidis.
In Syria, UK aid has provided more than £40 million this financial year to support the most vulnerable people in areas liberated from Daesh. Across Northeast Syria, this includes mental health support, child protection and education, support to demining and assisting survivors of Gender-Based Violence.
Asked by: Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how much UK Official Development Assistance expenditure will be invested in development and humanitarian support in Syria; and through which organisations that support will be directed.
Answered by Lord Bates
As one of the largest donors to the crisis since 2011, the UK remains at the forefront of the humanitarian response in Syria. Our support is focused on providing humanitarian assistance to those in most acute need. To date, we have pledged over £2.8 billion of Official Development Assistance to the Syria crisis – our largest response to a single humanitarian crisis – to alleviate the extreme suffering inside Syria and provide vital support to refugees and host communities in neighbouring countries. This includes our recent pledge at the third annual “Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region Conference”, where we committed to provide at least £400 million towards the Syria crisis in 2019.
UK funding is currently implemented through 16 agencies, including the UN, international NGOs and some private sector companies, which deliver much needed food, clean water, shelter and healthcare. For security reasons, we do not publicly disclose the identity of our partners operating in Syria.
Asked by: Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what percentage of visa applications involving the universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Bath, and Imperial College London, were successful in each of the last three years.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Visa refusal rate data is produced for internal use only and is not intended for publication.
The data requested provides sensitive information about sponsors’ compliance with their immigration requirements and by extension how likely they are to retain their sponsor licence. As this information could potentially impact their reputation and ability to attract international students, and therefore their commercial viability, we are unable to provide the information requested on the basis of commercial confidentiality.
Asked by: Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government which were the top 10 universities for successfully processed visa applications for each of the past three years; and what were the percentages of applications successfully processed for each.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Visa refusal rate data is produced for internal use only and is not intended for publication.
The data requested provides sensitive information about sponsors’ compliance with their immigration requirements and by extension how likely they are to retain their sponsor licence. As this information could potentially impact their reputation and ability to attract international students, and therefore their commercial viability, we are unable to provide the information requested on the basis of commercial confidentiality.
Asked by: Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they intend to implement the recommendation in the Smith Commission Report on post-study work visas; and if so, how.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
We will shortly be publishing the Government’s response to the recommendations made in the Scottish Affairs Committee’s report: “Post-study work schemes”.
Asked by: Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consultations took place with the Scottish Government in advance of the announcement of the pilot study on post-study work visas in July.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
We have been in correspondence with the Scottish Government concerning the Tier 4 visa pilot. There is no pilot study currently being conducted into post-study work visas.
The Tier 4 visa pilot is part of the Home Office’s continued efforts to ensure that the UK maintains an excellent offer to attract the brightest and best to study at our world-leading institutions. The pilot is deliberately narrow in scope, with the institutions selected on the basis of their consistently low level of visa refusals. Its main aim is to test the benefits of a differentiated approach within Tier 4, whilst ensuring any changes do not undermine the robust application of immigration requirements.
The pilot helps simplify the visa application process for international students looking to study on a Masters’ course, in the UK, of 13 months or less. Whilst it will also help to support students who wish to switch into a work route by extending the leave period following the end of their study to up to six months, it does not make any changes to the Tier 2 visa route and is not a return to the post-study work visa route.
The four selected institutions were consulted regarding its implementation. Should the pilot be successful, the Home Office will consult key stakeholders about its possible expansion.
Asked by: Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have received from the Scottish Government since July concerning the new pilot study on post-study work visas.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
We have been in contact with the Scottish Government concerning the Tier 4 visa pilot. There is no pilot study currently being conducted into post-study work visas.
The Tier 4 visa pilot is part of the Home Office’s continued efforts to ensure that the UK maintains an excellent offer to attract the brightest and best to study at our world-leading institutions. The pilot is deliberately narrow in scope, with the institutions selected on the basis of their consistently low level of visa refusals. Its main aim is to test the benefits of a differentiated approach within Tier 4, whilst ensuring any changes do not undermine the robust application of immigration requirements.
The pilot helps simplify the visa application process for international students looking to study on a Masters’ course, in the UK, of 13 months or less. Whilst it will also help to support students who wish to switch into a work route by extending the leave period following the end of their study to up to six months, it does not make any changes to the Tier 2 visa route and is not a return to the post-study work visa route.
The four selected institutions were consulted regarding its implementation. Should the pilot be successful, the Home Office will consult key stakeholders about its possible expansion.