Asylum Seekers: Local Authority Accommodation

Lord Watts Excerpts

Monday 16th January 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Murray of Blidworth (Con)]

I disagree with the noble Baroness that there is any want of compassion. Clearly, the asylum system in this country is struggling with very large numbers of people who have come here. We presently have 107,700 people in asylum support, and 50,800 of them are currently awaiting dispersal and are housed in initial and contingency accommodation. That includes some 373 hotels, and some of them are of a very high standard. I simply do not accept the characterisation that the noble Baroness suggested.

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

My Lords, the Minister says that he is not aware of any local authority that has failed in its duty to provide accommodation. Will he produce a league table with all the local authorities, so that this House and everyone outside it can understand what the real position is, rather than what the Minister claims?

[Lord Murray of Blidworth (Con)]

I will consider that proposition, take it back to the department and write to the noble Lord.

Banks: Forged Customer Signatures

Lord Watts Excerpts

Monday 16th January 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con)]

The noble Baroness makes an interesting point, which I will happily take back to those who are responsible for overlooking and overseeing the FCA.

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

My Lords, is it not the case that all our regulators are toothless tigers? What is needed is more resources and a change in legislation to give the powers to protect the public.

[Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con)]

My Lords, I do not believe that they are toothless tigers. As I have said a number of times regarding capacity and resources, a great deal is being done. There will be significant improvement to the National Economic Crime Victim Care Unit over the course of this year, and I would be happy to answer more questions on that.

Police: Employment and Discipline

Lord Watts Excerpts

Monday 9th January 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con)]

I join the noble Lord in agreeing that we owe our police officers—the vast majority of whom do an excellent job—our thanks and praise. He will also be aware that there have been a number of reports published on these subjects. The police forces will be coming back imminently with their responses to the HMICFRS report, to which I referred earlier. As I said, I think the report specified that it will be within 56 days. It is absolutely incumbent on the Government to work with all police forces to ensure that they deliver the highest possible standards.

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

My Lords, is it not the case that there are three stages, but there are three appeals, so there are six stages, which is why the process takes so long? Can the Minister confirm that the terms of reference will include the time it takes to go through the procedures, so that they are speeded up, and that that will be an important part of the review?

Solihull Murders

Lord Watts Excerpts

Wednesday 23rd November 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con)]

I completely agree with my noble friend. It may help if I go through the list of recommendations made by the IOPC to West Midlands Police in this case. The learning recommendations concerned domestic abuse risk assessments being completed without intelligence checks and misunderstanding by officers around when such risk assessments would be reviewed by their public protection unit. Other recommendations were that the force should consider PPU oversight of all domestic abuse cases with repeat victims, and further training around the use of domestic violence protection orders—DVPOs—and domestic violence protection notices.

My noble friend is quite right that no woman should be asked to undertake her own investigation; that is absolutely absurd. It is for the police to do it. The police have recognised it, the IOPC has published recommendations and West Midlands Police in particular is acting on it. I hope all other forces do too.

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

My Lords, the Minister says that every force should carry out this training, yet we know that a lot are not. Between the Home Office, the inspectorate and the police forces, where is the accountability in the system to make sure that this crucial training takes place?

[Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con)]

As the noble Lord is well aware—I have said it many times from the Dispatch Box—police forces in this country remain operationally independent. That is right, but of course the PCC is also the interface here between the public and the police. The statement on this case by the West Midlands PCC, Simon Foster, was very robust and made some solid points. With the noble Lord’s permission, I will quote a bit of it:

“My Police and Crime Plan makes it clear that West Midlands Police must impose bail conditions on perpetrators rather than releasing under investigation, make full use of civil protection orders and restraining orders and make arrests for breach of non-molestation orders.”


He goes on at some length and I will not repeat it all, but I think that is the appropriate response. I commend him on his actions and urge other PCCs to follow suit.

Counterterrorism: Martyn’s Law

Lord Watts Excerpts

Wednesday 23rd November 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con)]

As outlined in the Queen’s Speech, yes.

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

My Lords, can the Minister explain why the legislation programme seems much slower with this Government than it was with the previous ones?

[Lord Sharpe of Epsom (Con)]

No, I do not think I can.

Extradition Act 2003

Lord Watts Excerpts

Wednesday 29th June 2022 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Williams of Trafford (Con)]

I say to the noble Baroness that we have in fact refused far more extradition cases to the US than they have to us by quite a large margin.

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

When we left the European Union, our relations with Germany stopped. Have we negotiated anything as a replacement?

Ukrainian Nationals: Visitor Visas

Lord Watts Excerpts

Tuesday 22nd March 2022 Lords Chamber

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

My Lords, if families are taken in by British people and they are paid £350 per month, can the Government assure me that that £350 is not taxable?

[Lord Harrington of Watford (Con)]

I can assure the noble Lord absolutely that that is the case.

Enforcement of Lockdown Regulations

Lord Watts Excerpts

Tuesday 18th January 2022 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Williams of Trafford (Con)]

As I said to the noble Baroness in my first Answer, there is going to be more analysis of FPNs issued to different demographic groups. The outcome will be very interesting in all sorts of contexts—social and otherwise. Like her, I look forward to the findings from the analysis. In parallel to that, the HAC has published its report, The Macpherson Report: Twenty-two Years On, which raised the same concerns over disproportionality of FPNs.

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

My Lords, when the Prime Minister was holding a series of parties in No. 10, what were the police doing to enforce regulations?

[Baroness Williams of Trafford (Con)]

My Lords, I was not there, I am afraid.

European Arrest Warrant, Europol and Eurojust

Lord Watts Excerpts

Monday 2nd March 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

We obviously want an agreement across all areas of law enforcement co-operation—I cannot hypothecate what the noble Baroness says—because we want to keep our citizens safe.

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

My Lords, how will the Government extradite criminals from Germany given that, constitutionally, they are not allowed to do so unless it is within the European Union?

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

My Lords, arrangements will have to be in place that allow the system or the arrangements to take part in that country.

Immigration: International Students

Lord Watts Excerpts

Tuesday 10th October 2017 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

My noble friend points out precisely why they are included in the migration statistics.

[Lord Watts (Lab)]

Are not the figures the Minister gives for the Russell group distorted by the fact that some of those universities have a special visa system?

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

There has been a tier 4 visa pilot—that is possibly what the noble Lord is referring to—and we will evaluate its effectiveness. However, he actually makes a case for the fact that we welcome international students here.