Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have held with the Romanian government regarding preventing Romanian citizens from coming to the UK to beg.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The UK remains committed to maintaining constructive and respectful relations with Romania, and any future discussions on migration or related issues would be conducted in accordance with our shared values and international obligations.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have held with the Metropolitan Police regarding the use of anti-gang legislation to investigate and prosecute those controlling Romanian beggars in London.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
It is the responsibility of law enforcement and statutory partners to work collaboratively to tackle the threat from all forms of Serious and Organised Crime (SOC), maximising the full range of legislative and disruption opportunities available. SOC is a major threat to the national security and prosperity of the UK and organised crime groups continue to diversify their tactics in order to exploit the vulnerable and perpetrate harm. The Government is committed to tackling SOC in all its forms and ensuring police have the capabilities they need to protect individuals and communities. We are delivering the Safer Streets mission to create a safer, fairer country for all and have increased funding for policing by more than half a billion pounds this year.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the number of organised Romanian beggars in London.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
It is the responsibility of law enforcement and statutory partners to work collaboratively to tackle the threat from all forms of Serious and Organised Crime (SOC), maximising the full range of legislative and disruption opportunities available. SOC is a major threat to the national security and prosperity of the UK and organised crime groups continue to diversify their tactics in order to exploit the vulnerable and perpetrate harm. The Government is committed to tackling SOC in all its forms and ensuring police have the capabilities they need to protect individuals and communities. We are delivering the Safer Streets mission to create a safer, fairer country for all and have increased funding for policing by more than half a billion pounds this year.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the recent arrests of activists from the Youth Demand group in a Quaker Meeting House, what assessment they have made of the proportionality of (1) legislation governing protests in England; and (2) the enforcement of such legislation by the police.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The enforcement of protest legislation is an operational matter for the police. It is within their discretion to determine whether a particular action warrants police involvement, based on their operational expertise and the specific circumstances of each case.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to implement a scheme similar to the EU entry/exit system for EU nationals travelling to the UK.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The UK has introduced electronic travel authorisations (ETAs) to enhance our ability to screen travellers upstream, and improve the customer experience. The introduction of the ETA scheme is in line with the approach many of the UK’s international partners have already taken to border security, including the European Union’s forthcoming ETIAS and EES. The UK’s scheme was extended to eligible European nationals on 5 March 2025, and will be a requirement for this cohort for travel from 2 April 2025. In line with international partners, we are building upon our existing ability to track arrivals in and out of the country.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to require travellers to the UK to hold passports that (1) have been issued within ten years of their departure date, and (2) are valid for more than three months after their departure date.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The current requirement for travellers, as set out in the Immigration Rules - Guidance - GOV.UK, is that a person must, on arrival in the United Kingdom or when seeking entry through the Channel Tunnel, produce on request by a Border Force Officer a valid national passport or, subject to eligibility, another document satisfactorily establishing their identity and nationality. The document must be valid for the duration of the proposed travel to the UK.
There are currently no plans to change these requirements.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to implement a scheme similar to the European travel information and authorisation system for travellers to the UK.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The UK has introduced electronic travel authorisations (ETAs) to enhance our ability to screen travellers upstream, and improve the customer experience. The introduction of the ETA scheme is in line with the approach many of the UK’s international partners have already taken to border security, including the European Union’s forthcoming ETIAS and EES. The UK’s scheme was extended to eligible European nationals on 5 March 2025, and will be a requirement for this cohort for travel from 2 April 2025. In line with international partners, we are building upon our existing ability to track arrivals in and out of the country.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many people have been resettled under the UK Resettlement Scheme in each of the past four years.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Resettlement schemes play a key role in the global response to humanitarian crises: saving lives and offering stability to refugees most in need of protection. We work closely with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the global refugee agency, to identify those living in formal refugee camps, informal settlements and host communities who would benefit most from resettlement to the UK. Our resettlement schemes are not selective on the basis of employability or integration potential. Apart from the criteria we set for each scheme, we do not seek to influence which cases are referred to us by UNHCR. Our approach is to resettle refugees in line with the global need identified by UNHCR, typically from countries hosting large populations of refugees such as those bordering countries with conflicts, where resettlement may be the only durable solution. This provides refugees with a safe and legal route to the UK.
Data on the number of people resettled through the UK Resettlement scheme is published in the quarterly immigration statistics release. This is viewable on gov.uk.
The table below shows the number of individuals resettled under UKRS. The data is relevant up to December 2024.
| 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
UK Resettlement Scheme | 1,121 | 887 | 485 | 678 |
It is not possible to disclose staffing numbers relating to UKRS currently due to the operational nature of the scheme.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what action they take to promote the UK Resettlement Scheme to relevant immigrants.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Resettlement schemes play a key role in the global response to humanitarian crises: saving lives and offering stability to refugees most in need of protection. We work closely with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the global refugee agency, to identify those living in formal refugee camps, informal settlements and host communities who would benefit most from resettlement to the UK. Our resettlement schemes are not selective on the basis of employability or integration potential. Apart from the criteria we set for each scheme, we do not seek to influence which cases are referred to us by UNHCR. Our approach is to resettle refugees in line with the global need identified by UNHCR, typically from countries hosting large populations of refugees such as those bordering countries with conflicts, where resettlement may be the only durable solution. This provides refugees with a safe and legal route to the UK.
Data on the number of people resettled through the UK Resettlement scheme is published in the quarterly immigration statistics release. This is viewable on gov.uk.
The table below shows the number of individuals resettled under UKRS. The data is relevant up to December 2024.
| 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
UK Resettlement Scheme | 1,121 | 887 | 485 | 678 |
It is not possible to disclose staffing numbers relating to UKRS currently due to the operational nature of the scheme.
Asked by: Lord Swire (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many people they employ to administer the UK Resettlement Scheme.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Resettlement schemes play a key role in the global response to humanitarian crises: saving lives and offering stability to refugees most in need of protection. We work closely with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the global refugee agency, to identify those living in formal refugee camps, informal settlements and host communities who would benefit most from resettlement to the UK. Our resettlement schemes are not selective on the basis of employability or integration potential. Apart from the criteria we set for each scheme, we do not seek to influence which cases are referred to us by UNHCR. Our approach is to resettle refugees in line with the global need identified by UNHCR, typically from countries hosting large populations of refugees such as those bordering countries with conflicts, where resettlement may be the only durable solution. This provides refugees with a safe and legal route to the UK.
Data on the number of people resettled through the UK Resettlement scheme is published in the quarterly immigration statistics release. This is viewable on gov.uk.
The table below shows the number of individuals resettled under UKRS. The data is relevant up to December 2024.
| 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
UK Resettlement Scheme | 1,121 | 887 | 485 | 678 |
It is not possible to disclose staffing numbers relating to UKRS currently due to the operational nature of the scheme.