Asked by: Alyn Smith (Scottish National Party - Stirling)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which Minister is responsible for (a) overseeing the Hong Kong BN(O) Visa and (b) ensuring the welcome and integration of BN(O) passport holders to the UK.
Answered by Kevin Foster
On 31 January the new Hong Kong BN(O) route launched. The route will enable BN(O) status holders and their eligible family members to come to the UK to live, work and study. This new route reflects the UK’s historic and moral commitment to those people of Hong Kong who chose to retain their ties to the UK by taking up BN(O) status at the point of Hong Kong’s handover to China in 1997.
The Home Secretary continues to oversee the implementation of the immigration route.
Due to the cross-cutting nature of this policy, departments across the UK Government are working together, along with the devolved administrations given their responsibilities, to identify how support and guidance can be provided to ensure BN(O) status holders have every opportunity to thrive.
Further details will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Alyn Smith (Scottish National Party - Stirling)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the efficacy of Unexplained Wealth Orders in tackling financial crime in the UK.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
Unexplained Wealth Orders (UWOs) were introduced as part of the Criminal Finances Act 2017 and came into force from 1 January 2018. Whilst still relatively new legislation, the Home Office assesses that UWOs (and associated Interim Freezing Orders) are an important addition to existing powers which can result in the provision of critical information which could not be obtained in any other way. UWOs have been used in four cases so far, in relation to property worth an estimated £143.2m. The Home Office keeps the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and the Criminal Finances Act 2017 under review to ensure that all powers remain effective.
Asked by: Alyn Smith (Scottish National Party - Stirling)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans she has to bring forward legislative proposals to amend the Official Secrets Acts 1911 to 1989.
Answered by James Brokenshire
As set out in the Queen’s Speech in December 2019, the Government is developing legislation to tackle hostile activity conducted by foreign states.
As part of this we will carefully consider the Law Commission’s recommendations for reform of the OSAs, within their report on the Protection of Official Data which was published on 1 September 2020.
Asked by: Alyn Smith (Scottish National Party - Stirling)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many refugees below the age of 16 have been resettled in the UK in each of the last three months.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The Home Office is committed to publishing data in an orderly way as part of the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. These can be found at www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-statistic
The next set of figures will be in the quarterly release on 21 May 2020. These figures will include the number of people resettled in the period January to March 2020 and will also include a breakdown of minors arriving under each scheme. We do not publish a breakdown of resettlement family reunifications.
The arrival of refugees under our schemes is currently impacted by travel restrictions globally. As a result, our current planned arrivals will not happen as originally scheduled. We are closely monitoring the situation and expect resettlements to resume when conditions allow.
Asked by: Alyn Smith (Scottish National Party - Stirling)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many refugees have been resettled in the UK in each of the last three months.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The Home Office is committed to publishing data in an orderly way as part of the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. These can be found at www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-statistic
The next set of figures will be in the quarterly release on 21 May 2020. These figures will include the number of people resettled in the period January to March 2020 and will also include a breakdown of minors arriving under each scheme. We do not publish a breakdown of resettlement family reunifications.
The arrival of refugees under our schemes is currently impacted by travel restrictions globally. As a result, our current planned arrivals will not happen as originally scheduled. We are closely monitoring the situation and expect resettlements to resume when conditions allow.
Asked by: Alyn Smith (Scottish National Party - Stirling)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many refugees whose applications for resettlement in the UK have been granted by her Department have been reunited with their family in each of the last three months.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
The Home Office is committed to publishing data in an orderly way as part of the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. These can be found at www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-statistic
The next set of figures will be in the quarterly release on 21 May 2020. These figures will include the number of people resettled in the period January to March 2020 and will also include a breakdown of minors arriving under each scheme. We do not publish a breakdown of resettlement family reunifications.
The arrival of refugees under our schemes is currently impacted by travel restrictions globally. As a result, our current planned arrivals will not happen as originally scheduled. We are closely monitoring the situation and expect resettlements to resume when conditions allow.
Asked by: Alyn Smith (Scottish National Party - Stirling)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her policy on checks at UK borders has changed since the UK left the EU on 31 January 2020.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
There will be no change to checks at the UK border for the duration of the transition period.
Asked by: Alyn Smith (Scottish National Party - Stirling)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance her Department provides to UK Border Force staff on when to initiate in-depth questioning of people arriving at airports who (a) hold and (b) do not hold a valid visa.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
Under Schedule 2 to the Immigration Act 1971, Border Force staff appointed as Immigration Officers may examine any person arriving in the UK to establish their nationality and if they are not UK nationals, determine whether they require leave to enter and on what terms this leave should be given.
If the passenger is in possession of an entry clearance or visa, officers may examine the passenger to establish whether the purpose of the visit remains the same as that specified; there has been a change in circumstances since that leave was given; false information or material deception was used to obtain the visa; or there are medical grounds that should result in the cancellation of the visa. The passenger may also be examined by an immigration officer for the purpose of determining whether it would be conducive to the public good for their entry clearance or leave to be cancelled.
Asked by: Alyn Smith (Scottish National Party - Stirling)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate her Department has made of the number of people holding a valid visa who were refused entry at airports in the last (a) month, (b) six months and (c)12 months.
Answered by Kevin Foster
Border Force does not routinely publish data that does not meet the Home Office standard for publication or that could impact its operational effectiveness.
However, Border Force transparency data can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/border-force-statistics
Border Force is committed to ensuring that passengers arriving in the UK receive an excellent service. But this must also be balanced with our responsibility to Border Security, checking 100% of passports and making sure that anyone or anything that might cause harm to the UK is properly dealt with.
Asked by: Alyn Smith (Scottish National Party - Stirling)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many EU citizens have been questioned at UK airports and ferry ports whilst holding valid passports in the last (a) 12 months, (b) six months and (c) month, excluding people of interest to law enforcement authorities.
Answered by Kevin Foster
Border Force does not routinely publish data that does not meet the Home Office standard for publication or that could impact its operational effectiveness.
However, Border Force transparency data can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/border-force-statistics
Border Force is committed to ensuring that passengers arriving in the UK receive an excellent service. But this must also be balanced with our responsibility to Border Security, checking 100% of passports and making sure that anyone or anything that might cause harm to the UK is properly dealt with.