Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help support students who were falsely accused by Educational Testing Service of cheating in its Test of English for International Communication; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
We believe that the changes the Department has made since 2019 have already brought significant redress and we have been able to grant leave to many who might have otherwise been refused.
In view of this, we believe there are at present sufficient measures in place for individuals affected by ETS: TOEIC fraud, including obtaining the voice recording of their TOEIC test from ETS. We also believe, in light of the Upper Tribunal’s findings in DK and RK reference [2022] UKUT 00112. 23214, this is the fairest and most objective way in which an individual can challenge the allegation before them.
Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much was paid to her Department by Educational Testing Service in compensation for shortcomings in administering its Test of English for International Communication between 2011 and 2014.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Office does not have any published information on this matter.
Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether it is her Department's policy to expedite an application for leave to remain if an applicant is in receipt of local authority support; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
There is no general policy to expedite an application for leave to remain if an applicant is in receipt of local authority support. Decisions on expediting cases ahead of the published service standard are made on a case-by-case basis.
Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of increasing the maximum penalty for carrying a knife to more than four years’ imprisonment on trends in the level of knife crime.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The maximum penalty for being in possession of a knife in public is 4 years imprisonment. In year ending March 2023, the average custodial sentence lengths for knife possession and threatening offences are the highest they have been in the last 10 years, 7.5 months and 14.8 months respectively. Sentencing is a matter for our independent courts. When deciding what sentence to impose, courts must consider the circumstances of the case in line with any relevant sentencing guidelines issued by the independent Sentencing Council.
However, in recognition of the seriousness of offences related to knives, the law provides for minimum custodial sentences for repeat knife possession and offences that involve threatening with a weapon. Measures in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act which came into force in 2022 strengthened existing legislation to make sure that the courts always impose at least the minimum term unless there are exceptional circumstances.
Whilst the government is not currently considering increasing the maximum penalty of 4 years imprisonment, the government continues to strengthen knife legislation.
On 30 August, the government published its response to the consultation on new legislative proposals to tackle knife crime. We will introduce a ban on certain types of large knives that seem to appeal to those who want to use these items as weapons, for instance zombie style knives or machetes. We will also give the police more powers to seize dangerous weapons, create a new offence of possession of a bladed weapon with an intent to harm, and increase sentences for those who import, manufacture or sell dangerous weapons to under 18s.
The full government response can be found here: Government response to consultation on proposals to tackle the use of machetes and other bladed articles in crime. (publishing.service.gov.uk)
The measures detailed in the government response will be brought forward when parliamentary time allows, and we will continue to keep our knife legislation under review.
Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she expects UK Visas and Immigration to complete its reconsideration of the cases referred to by the Rt hon. Member for East Ham in the letter of 28 March, reference ST103787.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
An agreement to reconsider the application was provided by the Decision Making Centre (DMC) on 25th April 2023. The reconsideration of these applications took place on 20th July 2023. The applicants were contacted by the DMC on the 24th July 2023 about the resubmission of their passports to the Visa Application Centre and on 26th July 2023 the applicants submitted their passports for the completion of the visa process. The standard time scale for reconsiderations is three months and this reconsideration was completed within that three month timescale.
Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to publish a report of the pilots on alternatives to detention.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
UNHCR appointed the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) to independently evaluate both these pilots. The report for the first pilot, Action Access, was published by NatCen in January 2022.
Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) Sudanese and (b) non-Sudanese nationals have been granted entry clearance since 15 April 2023; and how many of those granted clearance came to the UK.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Office is committed to publishing transparency data on applications by nationality as part of the immigration quarterly statistics release, which is available on the GOV.UK website.
The next quarterly statistics release for Q2 (April – June 2023) is due for release in August.
Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 17 May 2023 to Question 184558 on Refugees: Afghanistan, whether people from Afghanistan who arrived in the UK through the (a) Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy and (b) Afghan citizens resettlement scheme who are due to leave a bridging hotel before 31 August 2023 and make a homelessness application to a local authority will have access to the Find Your Own Accommodation pathway to secure settled accommodation.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Those applying for the ARAP and ACRS will be able to access the Find Your Own accommodation pathway. Local Authorities will be able to use the funding to secure private rented accommodation for an Afghan household.
The government is providing £285 million of new funding to local authorities supporting the Afghan resettlement schemes. This includes £35 million in new cash for local authorities, which will go towards increasing the level of support available and overcoming key barriers in accessing the housing system and employment and a £250 million expansion of the Local Authority Housing Fund to help councils to source homes to house Afghans currently in bridging accommodation.
Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether local authorities are able to use funds from the Local Authority Tariff and Household Costs Fund to help secure private rented accommodation for an Afghan household in the UK through the (a) Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy and (b) Afghan citizens resettlement schemes who (i) remain in a bridging hotel due to end 31 August 2023 and (ii) have submitted a homeless application to a local authority.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Those applying for the ARAP and ACRS will be able to access the Find Your Own accommodation pathway. Local Authorities will be able to use the funding to secure private rented accommodation for an Afghan household.
The government is providing £285 million of new funding to local authorities supporting the Afghan resettlement schemes. This includes £35 million in new cash for local authorities, which will go towards increasing the level of support available and overcoming key barriers in accessing the housing system and employment and a £250 million expansion of the Local Authority Housing Fund to help councils to source homes to house Afghans currently in bridging accommodation.
Asked by: Stephen Timms (Labour - East Ham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 12 June to Question 187877 on Overseas Students: English Language, how many students suspected by ETS of cheating in its TOEIC English language test were (a) offered (i) the opportunity to retake the test and (ii) a credibility interview and (b) granted leave on the basis of subsequently passing a test or credibility interview more than three years ago.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Office does not publish ETS data as part of the Immigration Systems statistics.
For cases affected by ETS, decision makers must follow the current guidance published on 18 November 2020: Educational Testing Service (ETS): casework instructions (accessible version) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)