Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has taken recent steps to end the use of the false swim test.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Home Office welcomes the recent advice from the Government’s independent advisory body, the Animals in Science Committee, on the use of the forced swim test. The report and its recommendations are being carefully considered, and the Home Office will respond in due course.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has had recent discussions with Hospitality UK on the potential impact of the immigration fees introduced in October 2023 on the recruitment of (a) chefs, (b) hotel staff and (c) other staff in the hospitality sector.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
There is little evidence that fee increases to date have significantly affected demand on work routes.
The Home Office keeps fees under review and publish impact assessments when we make fee changes in legislation, which evaluate potential behavioural impacts on prospective applicants. A Regulatory Impact Assessment has been published and analyses the potential impact on migration, broken down by visa product and delineated on applications made in and out of country: The Immigration and Nationality (Fees) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2023 - Impact Assessment (legislation.gov.uk).
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has had recent discussions with Hospitality UK on the potential impact of increasing the minimum income threshold for visas on the recruitment of (a) chefs, (b) hotel staff and (c) other staff in the hospitality sector.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Government engages regularly with business sectors, including through a number of its advisory groups, when developing its policies and which will continue to strike the balance between reducing overall net migration and ensuring that businesses have the skills they need to support economic growth.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of harm reduction units for the use of drug taking in a safe environment.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The term ‘harm reduction units for the use of drug taking in a safe environment’ refers to what are often more commonly known as Drug Consumption Rooms (DCRs).
The Government does not support DCRs. We have been clear that we have concerns about the potential for these facilities to appear to condone drug use and to encourage the continued illicit supply of drugs. They will not be introduced in England and Wales. While we remain open to considering any new evidence, the evidence available to date has informed the current policy position.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will take steps to delay the implementation of the Government's proposed measures to restrict the ability for international students to bring family members to the UK on student visas.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Government’s measure to further restrict the right for international students to bring dependants to the UK, came into effect for courses starting from 1 January 2024.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an estimate of the cost to policing of alcohol abuse.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government is committed to reducing alcohol-related crime.
A 2012 calculation estimated that alcohol related harm costs society £21bn a year. However, we have not calculated an estimate of the cost to policing of alcohol abuse.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department takes to ensure that an equivalent test is not available without the use of animals before issuing a licence for animal experimentation.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The use of animals in scientific procedures is only authorised by the Home Office Regulator where there is clear scientific benefit, to people, animals, or the environment, and only when all aspects of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 have been fulfilled.
Licence applicants are required to robustly evidence their consideration of alternative methods. The Regulator reviews all licence applications and will only issue a licence once it is satisfied there are no practicable alternative methods.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department provides support to Palestinian people living in the UK to (a) work and (b) study; and whether his Department provides support to Palestinian people resident in the UK to provide homes for family residing in (i) Gaza and (ii) the West Bank.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Since 2015, over half a million people were offered safe and legal routes into the UK. This includes over 28.600 individuals resettled to the UK under our global resettlement schemes. We continue to provide the most vulnerable refugees in need of protection a route to safety directly from regions of conflict and instability through these schemes, which include the UK Resettlement Scheme, Community Sponsorship and the Mandate Resettlement scheme. This represents one of the most generous resettlement offers in the UK's history. However, the U.K. only has finite capacity. We cannot provide a safe and legal route for every conflict in the world.
There are no plans to introduce bespoke arrangements for people arriving from the region, and we are not considering establishing a separate route for Palestinians to come to the UK. Immediate family members of British citizens, and those settled in the UK, who wish to come and live in the UK and do not have a current UK visa, can apply under one of the existing family visa routes. The UK's efforts are focussed on ensuring aid reaches those who need in most. The Prime Minister announced on Monday 23 October that the UK will provide a further £20 million of humanitarian aid for civilians. This latest funding is in addition to the £10 million of aid announced by the Prime Minister last week.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will have discussions with relevant stakeholders on the potential merits of funding technology to (a) prevent cycle thefts and (b) enable secure tracking systems on bicycles and e-bikes.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government encourages the use of innovative new technology to prevent theft and trace stolen items.
In 2020 the Government published Gear Change – a bold vision for cycling and walking. Theme 4 of Gear Change includes various initiatives to reduce cycle theft. The Department for Transport and Active Travel England are working with the police-led National Cycle Crime Group to support regional cycle crime enforcement partnerships and raise awareness of better ways to secure cycles.
Cycle Crime Reduction Partnerships have been set up across the country to coordinate regional enforcement activity to disrupt organised cycle theft.
The Home Office has established an expert Stolen Goods Working Group with the police and academia to tackle the markets for stolen goods. The group is working to identify where and how stolen goods are commonly sold; examining ways to ensure property is secure, identifiable and traceable through property marking, and exploring ways to increase enforcement and share best practice between forces.
Crime survey of England & Wales for year ending June 2023 shows that bicycle theft since March 2010 has reduced by 54%.
There are currently no plans for the Home Office to provide any further funding for technology to tackle cycle theft.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to ensure that the UK meets its obligations to refugees under the 1951 Refugee Convention.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
All asylum claims admitted to the UK are carefully considered on their individual merits in accordance with our legal obligations. Each individual assessment is made against the background of relevant case law and the latest available country of origin information.
Our assessment of the situation of a given group in a given country is set out in the relevant country policy and information note, which is available on GOV.UK.