Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with Ministers from other Departments on the value to the UK economy of mid-level skills or those skills at Standard Occupational Classification levels 2 and 3; and what plans her Department has to ensure that any future changes to immigration policy allow businesses to continue to access those mid-level skills necessary for growth and employment in the UK.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
We are considering a range of options for our future immigration arrangements and are clear that we must manage the process properly so that the system serves the national interest.
On 27 July 2017, we commissioned the independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to advise on the economic and social impacts of the UK’s exit from the European Union and also on how the UK’s immigration system should be aligned with a modern industrial strategy. As part of this, the MAC has been asked to consider a number of factors including skill level.
They are due to report on their findings in September 2018.
Full details about the MAC commission can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/migration-advisory-committee
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the value to the UK economy of mid-level skills or those at Standard Occupational Classification levels 2 and 3; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
We are considering a range of options for our future immigration arrangements and are clear that we must manage the process properly so that the system serves the national interest.
On 27 July 2017, we commissioned the independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to advise on the economic and social impacts of the UK’s exit from the European Union and also on how the UK’s immigration system should be aligned with a modern industrial strategy. As part of this, the MAC has been asked to consider a number of factors including skill level.
They are due to report on their findings in September 2018.
Full details about the MAC commission can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/migration-advisory-committee
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what external engagement her Department is engaged in to improve its understanding of the importance to the UK economy of access to mid-skilled labour or labour rated at Standard Occupational Classification skill levels 2 and 3; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
We are considering a range of options for our future immigration arrangements and are clear that we must manage the process properly so that the system serves the national interest.
On 27 July 2017, we commissioned the independent Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to advise on the economic and social impacts of the UK’s exit from the European Union and also on how the UK’s immigration system should be aligned with a modern industrial strategy. As part of this, the MAC has been asked to consider a number of factors including skill level.
They are due to report on their findings in September 2018.
Full details about the MAC commission can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/migration-advisory-committee
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department took to assess the grounds for granting a visa to Mufti Hanif Qureshi.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
All visa applications are considered on their individual merits and in line with the Immigration Rules.
In order to safeguard an individual’s personal information and comply with the Data Protection Act 1998 the Home Office is limited in what information it can provide when the request is made by someone who is not the applicant. The Home Office is therefore unable to provide the information requested.
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department takes to prevent people using a false identity being granted entry clearance to the UK.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Home Office does not hold the specific information in relation to people from Pakistan using false identity, in the format requested. To obtain it would involve interrogating individual case records, at disproportionate cost.
All out of country entry clearance applications are subject to an extensive range of mandatory and discretionary checks.
These include, but are not limited to, identity, travel document verification, searches against national and international police records and against previous Immigration history.
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many times her Department has been made aware of people from Pakistan using a false identity to obtain entry clearance to the UK in the last five years.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Home Office does not hold the specific information in relation to people from Pakistan using false identity, in the format requested. To obtain it would involve interrogating individual case records, at disproportionate cost.
All out of country entry clearance applications are subject to an extensive range of mandatory and discretionary checks.
These include, but are not limited to, identity, travel document verification, searches against national and international police records and against previous Immigration history.
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Urdu speakers are employed at the (a) Home Office in Marsham Street, London and (b) British High Commission in Islamabad to investigate the background of people applying for entry clearance.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
There are no Urdu speakers employed by the Home Office in Marsham Street involved in processing Entry Clearance, as entry clearance applications are not considered at that location. There are 11 Urdu speaking staff employed at the British High Commission in Islamabad and seven at the British embassy in Abu Dhabi involved in the processing of visa applications, including investigating the background of people applying for entry clearance.
Under our ‘hub and spoke’ arrangements, applications lodged in Pakistan for settlement, applications under the Points Based System, and EEA applications are processed at the Visa section in Sheffield. Applications lodged in Pakistan for visits are processed in Abu Dhabi. The British High Commission in Islamabad processes Official applications made in-house.
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential effect on community cohesion of the presence of (a) Mufti Hanif Qureshi, (b) Muhammad Naquib ur Rehman and (c) Hassan Haseeb ur Rehman in the UK in 2016.
Answered by Sarah Newton
The Home Office does not routinely comment on assessments of foreign visitors to the UK.