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Written Question
Visas: Ukraine
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 15 March 2024 to Question 17855, whether all renewal processes for Ukrainians already in the UK are meant to be online.

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

Ukrainian guests wishing to apply for the Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) scheme will need to apply online using the digital application process. Full details on the application process and of eligibility will be available on GOV.UK ahead of the scheme launching in early 2025. Our intention is to open UPE to applications 3 months before the expiry of a person’s current visa to ensure Ukrainians have sufficient time to apply to the scheme.


Written Question
Visas: Ukraine
Friday 15th March 2024

Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if his Department will reinstate the digital application process for Ukrainians in the UK.

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

All Ukraine scheme application forms are accessed online. The application process which allowed Ukraine scheme applicants to use the UK Immigration ID Check app to provide facial biometrics was open to eligible Ukrainians outside of the UK until 7 December 2023. This process was only ever available for Ukrainians applying from outside of the UK. We keep the Ukraine schemes and application processes under constant review, including for Ukrainians in the UK.


Written Question
Cannabis: Mental Health
Thursday 14th March 2024

Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Independent review of drugs by Professor Dame Carol Black, if his Department will commission further research on the potential impact of the use of (a) skunk and (b) all other cannabis on levels of psychosis.

Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)

Dame Carol Black’s independent review of drugs noted that cannabis poses a large number of health risks, including psychological and respiratory disorders, particularly given increases in potency. There is a growing body of evidence that indicates a link between cannabis and psychosis which underlines the importance of our approach to tackling its misuse. Cannabis continues to be the most commonly used drug and around 21% of adults starting drug treatment between 2021 and 2022 said they had a problem with cannabis use.

For this reason, cannabis is controlled under Class B of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. There is clear scientific and medical evidence that cannabis is a harmful drug which can damage people’s mental and physical health, and harms people and communities.

At the UK Drugs Ministerial in November 2023, the latest research findings into the links between cannabis and psychosis were presented by a leading academic and those findings are informing policy making. The department has no current plans to commission further research into the links between cannabis and psychosis but continues to keep all drugs under review and will consider all evidence as appropriate.


Written Question
Prevent Independent Review
Tuesday 27th February 2024

Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what his planned timetable is for implementing the recommendations of the Independent Review of Prevent, published on 8 February 2023.

Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)

The Independent Review of Prevent was published on 8 February 2023.

On 20 February 2024, the Government published the Independent Review of Prevent: One year on progress report. The report details full progress against the Review’s recommendations. This report can be found at the following link: Independent Review of Prevent - One year on progress report.

We have implemented 30 of the 34 recommendations and are making rapid progress on delivering the remaining four.


Written Question
Prevent Independent Review
Tuesday 27th February 2024

Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which recommendations of the Independent Review of Prevent, published on 8 February 2023, have been implemented.

Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)

The Independent Review of Prevent was published on 8 February 2023.

On 20 February 2024, the Government published the Independent Review of Prevent: One year on progress report. The report details full progress against the Review’s recommendations. This report can be found at the following link: Independent Review of Prevent - One year on progress report.

We have implemented 30 of the 34 recommendations and are making rapid progress on delivering the remaining four.


Written Question

Question Link

Thursday 22nd February 2024

Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if his Department will take steps to halt evictions from temporary asylum accommodation for the full duration that a severe weather emergency protocol is active.

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

It has been agreed that the eviction or move on from asylum accommodation will pause for up to, but no more than three days, when Severe Weather Emergency Protocol (SWEP) is activated by a local authority and an individual does not have a housing offer from elsewhere.

The Home Office is working to ensure that individuals are offered support from Migrant Help or their partner organisation when they receive a decision on their asylum claim. This support includes providing advice on accessing the labour market, on applying for Universal Credit and signposting to local authorities for assistance with housing.


Written Question
Government Departments: Supply Chains
Monday 19th February 2024

Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to ensure that Departments meet the legal requirements to ensure the prevention of (a) human trafficking and (b) slave labour in supply chains.

Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)

The UK Government’s response to Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking is compliant with both domestic and international obligations, such as those covered under the Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, Modern Slavery Act 2015, Illegal Migration Act 2023 and Nationality and Borders Act 2022.

All contracting authorities are strongly encouraged to follow best practice and due diligence outlined in Procurement Policy Note 02/23.

Where a supplier is found to have a high or medium risk of having modern slavery in their supply chain, the Government-owned Modern Slavery Assessment Tool is used to identify what a supplier needs to do to tackle that risk.


Written Question
Visas: British National (Overseas)
Wednesday 17th January 2024

Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans his Department has to consider mitigating factors such as imprisonment under the National Security Law for Hong Kong citizens applying for British National (Overseas) visas.

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

Applicants to the British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) route must have no serious criminal convictions, have not otherwise engaged in behaviour which the UK Government deems not conducive to the public good, or be subject to other general grounds for refusal set out in the Immigration Rules. However, we recognise that every case has its individual circumstances therefore caseworkers have flexibility to ensure that those who have custodial sentences for crimes which are not recognised as such in the UK are not automatically refused on the BN(O) route.

In most cases, a person with a pending asylum claim can make an application to the BN(O) route. Recent changes ensure that a person who has been placed on immigration bail due to a pending asylum claim will not have their application to the BN(O) route refused solely for that reason. To make a successful application, applicants will need to meet all the other requirements of the route.


Written Question
Asylum: Hong Kong
Wednesday 17th January 2024

Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he plans to allow Hong Kongers who are being processed as asylum seekers to apply for BNO visas at the same time.

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

Applicants to the British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) route must have no serious criminal convictions, have not otherwise engaged in behaviour which the UK Government deems not conducive to the public good, or be subject to other general grounds for refusal set out in the Immigration Rules. However, we recognise that every case has its individual circumstances therefore caseworkers have flexibility to ensure that those who have custodial sentences for crimes which are not recognised as such in the UK are not automatically refused on the BN(O) route.

In most cases, a person with a pending asylum claim can make an application to the BN(O) route. Recent changes ensure that a person who has been placed on immigration bail due to a pending asylum claim will not have their application to the BN(O) route refused solely for that reason. To make a successful application, applicants will need to meet all the other requirements of the route.


Written Question
Immigration: Hong Kong
Wednesday 17th January 2024

Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to help protect Hong Kong (a) asylum seekers and (b) BNO visa holders who have settled in the UK from the Hong Kong authorities.

Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)

The Government continually assesses potential threats in the UK, and takes protection of individuals’ rights, freedoms, and safety very seriously.

We will not tolerate any attempts by the authorities of Hong Kong or China, or any other country to intimidate and silence individuals in the UK and overseas. The UK will always defend the universal right to freedom of expression and stand up for those who are targeted.

DLUHC, Home Office and FCDO regularly engage with a wide range of British Nationals Overseas (BN(O)) community groups. While it is our long-standing policy not to provide detailed information on security and intelligence matters, where we identify individuals at heightened risk, we are front footed in deploying protective security guidance and other measures as appropriate.

Furthermore, The Defending Democracy Taskforce is reviewing the UK’s approach to transnational repression to ensure we have a robust and joined up response across government and law enforcement.