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Written Question
Refugees: Children
Friday 8th December 2017

Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many children under the age of 18 have been resettled under the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme to date, broken down by (1) region, and (2) local authority.

Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)

Latest statistics published on 30 November 2017 confirmed that a total of 9,394 vulnerable people have been resettled since the start of the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme (VPRS) across various local authorities. Around half of those resettled under the VPRS were children.

The Home Office is committed to publishing data in an orderly way as part of the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. The statistics are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

The Home Office does not hold data in relation to the number of children resettled through this scheme who are currently accessing education or the average waiting time for children to start full-time education.

We continue to work with local authorities to make sure that every child has a school place.


Written Question
Refugees: Children
Thursday 7th December 2017

Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the average waiting time from arrival in the UK to starting full-time education for children resettled under the Vulnerable Children’s Resettlement Scheme.

Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)

Latest statistics published on 30 November 2017 confirmed that a total of 412 vulnerable people have been resettled under the Vulnerable Children's Resettlement Scheme (VCRS) across various local authorities. Around half of those resettled under the VCRS were children.

The Home Office is committed to publishing data in an orderly way as part of the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. The statistics are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

The Home Office does not hold data in relation to the number of children resettled through this scheme who are currently accessing education or the average waiting time for children to start full-time education.

We continue to work with local authorities to make sure that every child has a school place.


Written Question
Refugees: Children
Thursday 7th December 2017

Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many of those children resettled under the Vulnerable Children’s Resettlement Scheme to date are currently accessing education.

Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)

Latest statistics published on 30 November 2017 confirmed that a total of 412 vulnerable people have been resettled under the Vulnerable Children's Resettlement Scheme (VCRS) across various local authorities. Around half of those resettled under the VCRS were children.

The Home Office is committed to publishing data in an orderly way as part of the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. The statistics are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

The Home Office does not hold data in relation to the number of children resettled through this scheme who are currently accessing education or the average waiting time for children to start full-time education.

We continue to work with local authorities to make sure that every child has a school place.


Written Question
Refugees: Children
Thursday 7th December 2017

Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how many children under the age of 18 have been resettled under the Vulnerable Children’s Resettlement Scheme to date, broken down by (1) region, and (2) local authority.

Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)

Latest statistics published on 30 November 2017 confirmed that a total of 412 vulnerable people have been resettled under the Vulnerable Children's Resettlement Scheme (VCRS) across various local authorities. Around half of those resettled under the VCRS were children.

The Home Office is committed to publishing data in an orderly way as part of the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. The statistics are available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immigration-statistics-quarterly-release

The Home Office does not hold data in relation to the number of children resettled through this scheme who are currently accessing education or the average waiting time for children to start full-time education.

We continue to work with local authorities to make sure that every child has a school place.


Speech in Lords Chamber - Thu 09 Mar 2017
Criminal Finances Bill

"My Lords, I start by apologising to the Minister for the discourtesy of missing the first minute of her speech. I was in the Library and the Bill started too quickly for me.

The Bill is certainly a step in the right direction to strengthen the capacity of the UK’s …..."

Lord Watson of Invergowrie - View Speech

View all Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Lab - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Criminal Finances Bill

Speech in Lords Chamber - Thu 09 Mar 2017
Criminal Finances Bill

"I welcome the fact that discussions are continuing with the overseas territories, but they seem to be left entirely open-ended. In my contribution, I asked for a deadline. I do not believe that the Minister will give me one now, but there has to be some point beyond which we …..."
Lord Watson of Invergowrie - View Speech

View all Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Lab - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Criminal Finances Bill

Written Question
Foreign Investment in UK
Wednesday 30th July 2014

Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what checks are in place to ensure that the sources of the funds of foreign nationals seeking to invest in the United Kingdom are legitimate; and who carries out such checks.

Answered by Lord Taylor of Holbeach

Any application for a visa will be subject to checks undertaken by an Entry Clearance Officer (ECO), which will include checks on the applicant’s criminal history. In addition, applicants for a visa under the Tier 1 (Investor) category will be subject to checks to establish that the applicant’s funds meet the relevant requirements of the Immigration Rules, which include a requirement that the funds are held in a regulated financial institution.We require specific evidence of funds to be provided, and we do not accept evidence from financial institutions with which ECOs are unable to carry out satisfactory verification checks.


Written Question
Entry Clearances
Wednesday 30th July 2014

Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what checks are carried out on individuals applying for investor visas; and by whom.

Answered by Lord Taylor of Holbeach

Any application for a visa will be subject to checks undertaken by an Entry Clearance Officer (ECO), which will include checks on the applicant’s criminal history. In addition, applicants for a visa under the Tier 1 (Investor) category will be subject to checks to establish that the applicant’s funds meet the relevant requirements of the Immigration Rules, which include a requirement that the funds are held in a regulated financial institution.We require specific evidence of funds to be provided, and we do not accept evidence from financial institutions with which ECOs are unable to carry out satisfactory verification checks.


Written Question
Immigration Controls
Wednesday 23rd July 2014

Asked by: Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Labour - Life peer)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what checks are in place to ensure that the United Kingdom does not provide a safe haven for corrupt individuals or human rights violators; and who carries out such checks.

Answered by Lord Taylor of Holbeach

We are determined not to provide a safe haven for those who have committed serious crimes, including serious violations of human rights in other countries. Article 1F of the Refugee Convention allows us to deny the benefits of international protection to those who are believed to have committed serious international crimes. All asylum claims are carefully vetted and where there is any reason to believe that the subject has committed a crime or act contrary to Article 1F a referral process ensures that the case is investigated by specialist teams.We will also exclude from entering the UK, or deport those whose presence we do not consider conducive to the public good. There are powers to refuse settlement and naturalisation where there is evidence of corruption or abuse of human rights.


Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 10 Mar 2014
Immigration Bill

"My Lords, I, too, support Amendments 50 and 51 in the name of my noble friend Lady Smith of Basildon. In doing so, I want to reinforce many of the points that have already been made. It is important that is done and that the Government fully appreciate the amount …..."
Lord Watson of Invergowrie - View Speech

View all Lord Watson of Invergowrie (Lab - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Immigration Bill