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Written Question
Blood: Contamination
Friday 22nd March 2024

Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the joint letter to him from Scottish and Welsh Ministers in relation to Infected Blood Compensation and Interim Payments, dated 22 January 2024, when he plans to make interim compensation payments to bereaved parents and children.

Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

In October 2022, we made interim payments of £100,000 to chronic infected beneficiaries and bereaved partners registered with existing support schemes. I recognise the importance the infected blood community places on interim payments relating to those deaths not yet recognised, and the Government is working through the technical implications of recommendation 12.


Written Question
Asylum: Churches
Monday 11th March 2024

Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the article by the former Secretary of State for the Home Department, the Rt hon. Member for Fareham, entitled Too many churches are facilitating bogus asylum claims. This must stop, published by the Telegraph on 3 February 2024, whether his Department holds evidence of churches facilitating high levels of false asylum claims.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

Every asylum case is determined on its individual merits and on a case by case basis. The Home Secretary and the Church are working together to better scrutinise asylum claims based on religious persecution and ensure those in genuine need are supported, and that there are no loopholes to claiming asylum in this country.


Written Question
Immigration: Appeals
Wednesday 6th March 2024

Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he plans implement the decision of case HU/00830/2021, served to his Department on 26 June 2023.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

We do not comment on individual cases.


Written Question
Visas: Foreign Investment in UK
Friday 1st March 2024

Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he plans to publish the review into the Tier 1 investor visa route.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

The Home Secretary’s Written Ministerial Statement of 12 January 2023 provided the findings of the review and represented the Home Office’s commitments given by a previous Home Secretary (the Rt Hon Amber Rudd) to undertake a review of the operation of the Tier 1 Investor visa route between 30 June 2008 and 06 April 2015. The Tier 1 (Investor) route was closed on 17 February 2022. The Government will not be publishing anything further in connection with the review.

As set out in the Home Secretary’s statement, the review found a small minority of individuals connected to the route were at risk of having obtained their wealth through illicit or criminal means. Given the importance of ensuring the effective and independent law enforcement processes of our operational partners, we will not be commenting further.


Written Question
Health Professions: Scotland
Tuesday 27th February 2024

Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information her Department holds on the number of Scottish citizens who worked in the NHS that emigrated in each year since 2010.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department does not hold the information requested.


Written Question
Health Professions: Emigration
Tuesday 27th February 2024

Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what information her Department holds on the number of UK citizens who worked in the NHS that emigrated in each year since 2010.

Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

The Department does not hold the information requested.


Written Question
Refugees: Ukraine
Monday 12th February 2024

Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Ukrainians have applied for refugee status in the UK outwith the Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme since March 2022.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

The Home Office publishes data on asylum by nationality in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on asylum applications is published in table Asy_D01 of the ‘Asylum applications, decisions and resettlement detailed datasets’. Information on how to use the dataset can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbook. The latest data relates to the year ending September 2023. Data up to the end of 2023 will be published on 29 February 2024.

Further information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘Research and statistics calendar’.


Written Question
Members: Correspondence
Monday 5th February 2024

Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to respond to the correspondence dated 3 November 2023 from the hon. Member for Glasgow Central on the DVLA and identity documents, reference ZA33642.

Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)

A response to your letter was sent on 1 February. Apologies are given on behalf of the DfT for the delay in responding.


Written Question
UNRWA: Finance
Friday 2nd February 2024

Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of some countries pausing funding to the UN relief and works agency for palestine refugees in the near east (UNRWA) on the humanitarian response in Gaza.

Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)

The UK is appalled by allegations that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) staff were involved in the 7 October attack against Israel, a heinous act of terrorism that the UK Government has repeatedly condemned. The UK is pausing any future funding of UNRWA whilst we review these concerning allegations.

We remain committed to getting humanitarian aid to the people in Gaza who desperately need it, and our decision to pause future funding to UNRWA has no impact on the UK's contribution to the humanitarian response. Our commitment to trebling aid to Gaza still stands, and we are getting on with aid delivery through funding multiple implementing partners including other UN agencies and international and UK NGOs. This support is helping people in Gaza get food, water, shelter and medicines. The UK is providing £60 million in humanitarian assistance to support partners including the British Red Cross, UNICEF, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and Egyptian Red Crescent Society (ERCS) to respond to critical food, fuel, water, health, shelter and security needs in Gaza.


Written Question
Gaza: Israel
Friday 2nd February 2024

Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of the Israeli government's compliance with the provisional measures set forth by the International Court of Justice in the case concerning Application of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide in the Gaza Strip (South Africa v. Israel).

Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)

We regularly review advice about Israel's capability and commitment to International Humanitarian Law, and acts in accordance with that advice.

We respect the role and independence of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). However, we have stated that we have considerable concerns about this case, which is not helpful in the goal of achieving a sustainable ceasefire. Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas in line with International Humanitarian Law, as we have said from the outset. Our view is that Israel's actions in Gaza cannot be described as a genocide, which is why we thought South Africa's decision to bring the case was wrong and provocative. However, we welcome the Court's call for the immediate release of hostages and the need to get more aid into Gaza. We are clear that an immediate pause is necessary to get aid in and hostages out, and then we want to build towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to the fighting.