Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 18 November 2025 to Question 90131, how many decisions by operational managers in relation to the cost of returning someone to their final place of stay and supporting welfare and safety a) have involved discretionary payments of £500 or more and b) have involved discretionary payments of up to £500; and what was the total cost of all such payments in the last 12 months for which figures are available.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The specific information requested is not centrally held and could only be collected and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the application by the Sheiling Special Education Trust submitted on 9th September 2025 to the UKVI will be decided; and whether that will be prior to the expiry date for the current visas of those workers.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
There is no risk to the continuity of leave for sponsored workers currently with the Sheiling Educational Trust.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 20th November to question 86600, if she will use her powers under Section 41A of The Police Act 1996 to require Dorset Police to investigate remedial measures by reason of its failure to conclude to discharge its functions relating to the investigation and prosecution of fraud.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
Operational policing is not a Home Office matter. Chief Constables are operationally independent, with decisions often made based on threat, risk and harm.
The Home Secretary has powers under the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 to ensure an efficient and effective policing system, which includes the power under S.40 and 40A of the Police Act 1996.
Under the Policing Protocol these powers can only be used in exceptional circumstances in order to prevent or mitigate risk to the public or national security. Where necessary, this Government has been clear it will provide active leadership for policing to make it more efficient and effective.
Fraud is now incorporated into His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) Police Efficiency Effectiveness and Legitimacy (PEEL) framework. The upcoming inspection cycle will formally assess each police force in England and Wales on their performance in tackling fraud. This will provide valuable insight on investigative practices whilst also improving standards and consistency across police forces.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 20th November to question 86600, to whom Dorset Police is accountable for discontinuing investigations into serious fraud.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
Operational policing is not a Home Office matter. Chief Constables are operationally independent, with decisions often made based on threat, risk and harm.
The Home Secretary has powers under the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 to ensure an efficient and effective policing system, which includes the power under S.40 and 40A of the Police Act 1996.
Under the Policing Protocol these powers can only be used in exceptional circumstances in order to prevent or mitigate risk to the public or national security. Where necessary, this Government has been clear it will provide active leadership for policing to make it more efficient and effective.
Fraud is now incorporated into His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) Police Efficiency Effectiveness and Legitimacy (PEEL) framework. The upcoming inspection cycle will formally assess each police force in England and Wales on their performance in tackling fraud. This will provide valuable insight on investigative practices whilst also improving standards and consistency across police forces.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will conduct an inquiry into the reasons why Dorset Police discontinued their investigation into the fraudulent activities identified in Operation Ringwood.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office is aware of the Operation Ringwood investigation and strongly sympathises with the distressing experience that victims have faced.
The Home Secretary is unable to intervene in any operational decisions made by law enforcement regarding reports and the investigation of potential crimes. This is to maintain the independence of the organisations involved, including the police and courts, which remains a fundamental part of the British justice system.
We are committed to strengthening law enforcement capabilities to tackle fraud and protect the public. Further detail will be set out in the upcoming Fraud Strategy.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 12 November 2025 to Question 88185 on Hadush Kebatu, what operational guidance her Department has issued to prevent small discretionary payments from being used as (a) inducements and (b) bribes.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
All discretionary payments must go through a clearance process. Operational managers take into consideration the cost of returning someone to their final place of stay and supporting welfare and safety.
As always with expenditure on returns, these one-off costs must be set against the much higher long-term costs that would result from the same individuals remaining in the UK, including, where necessary, ongoing expenditure on accommodation or detention and the legal processes required to authorise their removal.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many of the initial asylum decisions resulting in refusal have been the subject of an appeal to the First-tier Tribunal between October 2024 and March 2025; and how many of those (a) were successful, (b) were unsuccessful and (c) are outstanding.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on asylum appeals lodged, and determined by outcome, are published in tables Asy_D06 and Asy_D07, respectively, of the asylum detailed datasets. The latest data relates to the year ending March 2023. Appeals data for April 2023 onwards is not available due to ongoing work on a new case working system. Updated data will be included in a future edition of the Immigration system statistics release.
The Ministry of Justice publishes data on asylum appeals in the ‘Tribunal Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on the open caseload for appeals relating to asylum, protection and revocation of protection is published in table FIA_4. The latest data relates to as at March 2025.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 12 November to Question 88185 on Hadush Kebatu, how many small discretionary payments to prevent the failure of returns were made by the Home Office in each of the last 12 months for which figures are available; what was (a) the maximum and (b) the minimum amount paid; and were such payments made under (i) the Voluntary Returns Service, (ii) the Facilitated Returns Scheme or (iii) another scheme.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The information requested regarding small discretionary payments to prevent the failure of returns are not available from published statistics.
The Home Office does already publish all available information on returns expenditure in the Home Office Annual Report and accounts at Home Office annual reports and accounts - Home Office annual reports and accounts - GOV.UK
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 4 November to Question 86603, whether the £500 facilitation payment given to Hadush Kebatu was paid under the (a) Voluntary Returns Service or (b) Facilitated Return Scheme; and what was the qualifying criterion which was applied.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Mr Kebatu was issued a £500 discretionary payment to avoid the potential disruption of this return. Cancelling the return at the last stage would have triggered substantial costs. If the operation had been halted before departure, the minimum unavoidable escort and ticketing costs would have exceeded several thousands of pounds.
The Home Office applies small discretionary payments, where appropriate, to prevent the failure of returns. These payments facilitate returns by making them quicker and cheaper, helping to avoid delays and additional costs. Decisions on their use are operational in nature.
Asked by: Christopher Chope (Conservative - Christchurch)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to improve decision-making by her Department in the context of the number of successful appeals under the Human Rights Act 1998 upheld by the First-tier Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber).
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’.
Data on initial decisions and outcomes on asylum claims, is published in table Asy_D02 of the ‘Asylum claim and initial decisions detailed datasets’. The latest data relates to as at 30 June 2025.
Data for as at 30 September 2025 will be published on 27 November 2025.
Data on asylum appeals is published in table Asy_D06 and Asy_D07 of the ‘Asylum appeals lodged and determined detailed datasets’. The latest data relates to the year ending March 2023.
Information on how to use the datasets can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbooks.
Appeals data from April 2023 onwards is currently unavailable for publication due to ongoing work as immigration data transitions to a new caseworking system. Work is ongoing to make this information available, and it will be included in a future edition of the Immigration System Statistics release.
Please note that figures for immigration and asylum appeals at First-Tier Tribunal and subsequent stages are published by the Ministry of Justice as part of their Tribunal Statistics release. The latest data relates to January to March 2025.