Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of increasing safeguarding for people at risk of (a) spiritual and (b) ritualistic abuse.
Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
Spiritual and ritualistic abuse abhorrent thought it is, is not ‘honour’-based abuse or VAWG. Therefore, we do not hold the information to respond to this PQ.
The Department for Education have previously worked on the child abuse linked to faith or belief action plan which was published on GOV.UK at Child abuse linked to faith or belief: national action plan - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of taking additional steps to reduce (a) spiritual and (b) ritualistic abuse.
Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
Spiritual and ritualistic abuse abhorrent thought it is, is not ‘honour’-based abuse or VAWG. Therefore, we do not hold the information to respond to this PQ.
The Department for Education have previously worked on the child abuse linked to faith or belief action plan which was published on GOV.UK at Child abuse linked to faith or belief: national action plan - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to safeguard people at risk of (a) spiritual and (b) ritualistic abuse.
Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
Spiritual and ritualistic abuse abhorrent thought it is, is not ‘honour’-based abuse or VAWG. Therefore, we do not hold the information to respond to this PQ.
The Department for Education have previously worked on the child abuse linked to faith or belief action plan which was published on GOV.UK at Child abuse linked to faith or belief: national action plan - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of implementing a specific timeframe for Section 95 applications to be completed.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Office endeavours to complete applications as fast as possible.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2023 to Question 1700 on Asylum: Finance, what his Department considers to be a timely manner.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Decision times will vary by case, as each application is different; we aim to reach a decision as swiftly as possible.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department has a target for the time taken to make decisions on section 95 asylum support applications.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Each case will be different so it is difficult to say how long the Home Office will need to decide an individual application for section 95 support, though we do endeavour to complete applications in a timely manner. Once we receive an asylum seeker’s fully completed application from Migrant Help, we prioritise those who are homeless and those who are in initial accommodation.
If an asylum seeker requires an update on their application’s progress, they are encouraged to contact Migrant Help who can request an update from the Home Office. This can be done via their webchat, the ‘raise an issue’ link on their website or by calling their freephone helpline on 0808 8010 503.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of hotels previously used to house asylum seekers have stopped being used for this purpose in the last 12 months.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Data on the number of supported asylum seekers in accommodation (including in contingency hotels and other contingency accommodation) is published in table Asy_D11 here: Asylum and resettlement datasets - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). Data is published on a quarterly basis, with the next quarterly figures due to be released at the end of November 2023.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many hotels his Department is using to provide accommodation for asylum seekers.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Data on the number of supported asylum seekers in accommodation (including in contingency hotels and other contingency accommodation) is published in table Asy_D11 here: Asylum and resettlement datasets - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). Data is published on a quarterly basis, with the next quarterly figures due to be released at the end of November 2023.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will hold discussions with the Comptroller and Auditor General on a possible value for money audit of the Forced Marriage Unit.
Answered by Sarah Dines
The Government is committed to tackling forced marriage in all its forms.
The Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) is jointly managed by the Home Office and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. The FMU has assisted thousands of forced marriage victims and delivered training to over 5,000 professionals in the last three years. There are currently no plans for an audit of FMU, but its performance and value for money is kept under regular review.
The FMU has robust processes and procedures in place to ensure information given to victims and the professionals who support them is accurate. No complaints from victims have been received in the past four years for which records are available. All cases reported to the FMU are recorded on a dedicated casework database.
FMU caseworkers check the full circumstances of each case before giving advice. The FMU has no record of providing inaccurate information or advice to a victim or suspected victim of forced marriage.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on how many occasions the Forced Marriage Unit had provided incorrect advice to victims in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Sarah Dines
The Government is committed to tackling forced marriage in all its forms.
The Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) is jointly managed by the Home Office and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. The FMU has assisted thousands of forced marriage victims and delivered training to over 5,000 professionals in the last three years. There are currently no plans for an audit of FMU, but its performance and value for money is kept under regular review.
The FMU has robust processes and procedures in place to ensure information given to victims and the professionals who support them is accurate. No complaints from victims have been received in the past four years for which records are available. All cases reported to the FMU are recorded on a dedicated casework database.
FMU caseworkers check the full circumstances of each case before giving advice. The FMU has no record of providing inaccurate information or advice to a victim or suspected victim of forced marriage.