Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether Ministers may make personal statements that do not reflect Government policy.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
The Ministerial Code sets out the standards of conduct expected of ministers and how they discharge their duty. Notably:
Section 8.3: Ministers should ensure that their statements are consistent with collective Government policy;
Section 6.5: Ministers are free to make their views about constituency matters known to the responsible Minister by correspondence, leading deputations or by personal interview provided they make clear that they are acting as their constituents’ representative and not as a Minister.
The Ministerial Code can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ministerial-code
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the speech to the American Enterprise Institute by the Secretary of State for the Home Department on 26 September was approved by the Prime Minister, and whether it reflected (1) Government policy, and (2) any changes to their policy, on (a) migration, and (b) multiculturalism.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
The speech was cleared by No.10 and other government departments in the usual way.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much they have paid for the Bibby Stockholm barge since it has been empty.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
Accommodation costs are considered to be commercially confidential. Therefore, the Home Office does not publish this information. However, total expenditure on asylum is published in the Home Office Annual Report and Accounts, available at:
Home Office Annual Report and Accounts 2022-2023 (publishing.service.gov.uk)
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have for the future of the Bibby Stockholm barge.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
Further tests have been conducted in recent weeks. Once those are complete and it is safe to do so, we will move people back onto the Bibby Stockholm.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to reform the right of a Prime Minister who has served for a short period to submit a resignation honours list.
Answered by Baroness Neville-Rolfe - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
It is a long-standing convention that outgoing Prime Ministers can draw up a ‘Dissolution’ or ‘Resignation’ List. This has been the case under past governments from across the political spectrum. This convention has been the case throughout the 20th Century, originating in the 19th Century.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that families of asylum seekers housed on a waterborne barge will be kept together.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
The Bibby Stockholm will provide non-detained accommodation for single adult male asylum seekers aged 18 to 65 who would otherwise be destitute. No families will be housed aboard.
The cohort of single adult males has been agreed with local authorities and health partners to mitigate the burden on local public services, for example local schools and health services.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what arrangements they will put in place to ensure Aspen card holding asylum seekers can exchange a payment from their cards for any goods they require.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
Arrangements are already in place to ensure destitute asylum seekers can buy goods that they require to meet their essential living needs. Asylum seekers who are assessed as destitute under Section 95 are provided with a weekly allowance which is loaded on to a debit card (ASPEN card). ASPEN cards can be used to pay for retail transactions at most shops displaying the Mastercard logo, up to the value of the available balance. They can also be used to check available balances at cash machines, to withdraw cash from cash machines and to get cash back when purchasing items at Mastercard participating shops. ASPEN cards cannot be used to make contactless, telephone or internet payments and the card cannot be used overseas.
Failed Asylum Seekers who are assessed as destitute under Section 4 will not be able use their card to withdraw cash from a machine or get cashback from shops.
As part of normal service, anyone experiencing issues in relation to their ASPEN payment card can report them to our Advice, Issue Reporting and Eligibility (AIRE) provider, Migrant Help, 24 hours a day on the freephone number.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what arrangements they will make for delegations of parliamentarians to visit the Bibby Stockholm and any other new accommodation for migrants.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
If parliamentarians wish to visit a facility they should make a request through the normal Home Office channels.
Vessels have been used in Germany, Belgium and Scotland.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to ensure that asylum seekers housed on a waterborne barge are able to access necessary help in any emergency, including a medical emergency or fire.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
In the Netherlands and Belgium, the authorities have delivered accommodation for asylum seekers on vessels in a safe and secure manner. The Scottish Government have successfully done so for Ukrainian refugees.
The welfare of those in our care is of the utmost priority. The Bibby Stockholm successfully completed all fire and safety checks ahead the first individuals boarding. The vessel completed a statutory inspection and refurbishment before undergoing final preparations to accommodate asylum seekers.
We have been in liaison with Dorset & Wiltshire Fire Service to ensure that the safety of the vessel and its occupants are being appropriately managed in line with relevant legislation. Tactical plans, including arrangements for evacuation of residents to assembly areas away from the quayside and outside the gated area, have been developed.
The fire safety standards on the Bibby Stockholm are the same as any other berthed vessel and meets the industry standard.
In the case of the Bibby Stockholm, there is a log of who is on and off the vessel. During an emergency, our supplier would know who was/was not aboard and would contact any affected individuals. Our supplier would stay in constant touch with local law enforcement. In the event of a prolonged incident, and if there was a requirement to provide emergency accommodation, the supplier would find a room and direct the person to the accommodation, arranging local taxi transport if required.
Facilities onboard the vessel will be designed to provide for the essential needs of those accommodated in order to minimise the impact on local communities and local services. This includes the provision of primary healthcare, catering facilities and 24/7 security. The vessel’s 24/7 security team have established procedures for working with local police and emergency services.
The medical facility on the barge will be staffed 5 days a week to provide an onsite primary healthcare service with which the asylum seekers will register; this means individuals will not need to register with a local GP practice. The medical team has previous experience of working with asylum seekers.
This team will provide care to the asylum seekers either on the vessel itself between the hours of 9am-5pm, or remotely (including outside of these hours).
Medical provision will include:
Home Office is providing funding to the NHS to support on-site primary health service, to help reduce the impact on NHS services.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have taken into account the advice they issue to UK nationals travelling to overseas countries when discussing the suitability of those countries to house asylum seekers.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
FCDO travel advice is to help British nationals make informed decisions about foreign travel and plan for a safe trip and is based upon the FCDO’s assessment of the risk to the safety and security of British nationals specifically.
In contrast, when the Home Office determines whether a third country is safe for an asylum seeker, we are considering the risks faced by the claimant in accordance with our international obligations under the Refugee Convention and European Convention for Human Rights.