Asked by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will list the meetings held since May 2016 by (a) Ministers and (b) officials of her Department with representatives of the British Medical Association on the matter of the involvement of medical professionals with respect to firearms licensing.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
Home Office Ministers and officials have regular meetings with Ministerial colleagues and others as part of the process of policy development and as was the case with previous administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings. It is, however, the case that we have discussed the involvement of medical professionals in firearms licensing procedures with representatives of the police, the medical profession and shooting organisations and we shall continue to do so, as appropriate.
Asked by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, she will list the meetings held since May 2016 by (a) Ministers and (b) officials of her Department with the British Association for Shooting and Conservation on the matter of the involvement of medical professionals with respect to firearms licensing.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
Home Office Ministers and officials have regular meetings with Ministerial colleagues and others as part of the process of policy development and as was the case with previous administrations, it is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings. It is, however, the case that we have discussed the involvement of medical professionals in firearms licensing procedures with representatives of the police, the medical profession and shooting organisations and we shall continue to do so, as appropriate.
Asked by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information she holds on the proportion of firearms licensing applications for grant and renewal which require further inquiries into the medical health of applicants.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
Firearms licensing is an operational matter for police forces. The police are not required to provide data to the Home Office about how the medical checks are conducted or the response from GPs. The police carry out a number of checks to ensure that those in possession of firearms do not pose a danger to public safety, including in relation to medical suitability. As part of this process, GPs are asked to provide information about whether the applicant has suffered from a number of relevant medical conditions.
The Government has consulted on the introduction of new statutory firearms guidance to police, which includes proposals for revised medical arrangements to ensure that police have the medical information they require before the grant of a certificate. The consultation closed on 17 September and the Government will publish its response and the statutory guidance in due course.
Asked by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she has taken to ensure that medical involvement in firearms licensing conforms her Department's guidance on firearms licensing.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The police are responsible for assessing the suitability of those who apply for the grant or renewal of a firearm or shotgun certificate. The police carry out a number of checks to ensure that those in possession of firearms do not pose a danger to public safety, including in relation to medical suitability based on information from the applicant’s GP.
The Government has consulted on the introduction of new statutory firearms guidance to police to bring greater consistency to licensing practice across the country. This includes proposals for revised medical arrangements to ensure that police have the medical information they require before the grant of a certificate.
An impact assessment on the proposed medical arrangements was published alongside the consultation document. This made reference to a range of fees being charged by some GPs to provide the medical information. The consultation closed on 17 September and the Government will publish its response and the statutory guidance in due course.
Asked by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what impact assessment was undertaken on the potential effect of the introduction of GP verification on levels of participation in the shooting community.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The police are responsible for assessing the suitability of those who apply for the grant or renewal of a firearm or shotgun certificate. The police carry out a number of checks to ensure that those in possession of firearms do not pose a danger to public safety, including in relation to medical suitability based on information from the applicant’s GP.
The Government has consulted on the introduction of new statutory firearms guidance to police to bring greater consistency to licensing practice across the country. This includes proposals for revised medical arrangements to ensure that police have the medical information they require before the grant of a certificate.
An impact assessment on the proposed medical arrangements was published alongside the consultation document. This made reference to a range of fees being charged by some GPs to provide the medical information. The consultation closed on 17 September and the Government will publish its response and the statutory guidance in due course.
Asked by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the introduction by police constabularies of GP verification of firearms licensing.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The police are responsible for assessing the suitability of those who apply for the grant or renewal of a firearm or shotgun certificate. The police carry out a number of checks to ensure that those in possession of firearms do not pose a danger to public safety, including in relation to medical suitability based on information from the applicant’s GP.
The Government has consulted on the introduction of new statutory firearms guidance to police to bring greater consistency to licensing practice across the country. This includes proposals for revised medical arrangements to ensure that police have the medical information they require before the grant of a certificate.
An impact assessment on the proposed medical arrangements was published alongside the consultation document. This made reference to a range of fees being charged by some GPs to provide the medical information. The consultation closed on 17 September and the Government will publish its response and the statutory guidance in due course.
Asked by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effect on the NHS of police forces requiring medical verification for firearms licensing applications from GPs during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The Government recognises that firearms licensing arrangements, including the medical aspects, will be affected by the measures that have been put in place in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. We want to avoid placing any additional or unnecessary burdens on the NHS, and police forces may need to adopt a flexible approach to meet local need and risk in the current exceptional circumstances, with some impact on firearms licensing arrangements. The Government will continue to have discussions with the police to keep firearms licensing under review over the coming weeks and months.
Asked by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance her Department has provided to the Chairman of the National Police Chief Council's firearms and explosives committee on firearms licensing by constabularies.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The Government has not issued guidance specifically to the National Police Chiefs’ Council on firearms licensing. However, in accordance with section 133 of the Policing and Crime Act 2017, the Secretary of State must consult the National Police Chiefs' Council and the chief constable of the Police Service of Scotland before issuing statutory guidance to the police on firearms licensing. Such consultation will take place before this guidance is issued.
Asked by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many non-disclosure agreements his Department has entered into in each year since 2005.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Home Office is not able to provide a response as this information is generally not held centrally. This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Mike Penning (Conservative - Hemel Hempstead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when his Department plans to respond to recommendations made in the Lift the Ban report entitled Why people seeking asylum should have the right to work; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The Government’s policy on right to work for those seeking asylum is consistent with EU law and permits asylum seekers to work, in jobs on the Shortage Occupation List, if they have been waiting for a decision on their claim for 12 months or more and the delay is through no fault of their own.
During the Meaningful Vote debate on 5 December, the Home Secretary stated that although there are no current plans to change the current policy, it is an area he wished to review, and work on this is ongoing.