Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has had recent discussions with (a) HSBC and (b) Standard Chartered on the impact of their policies on not recognising the British National (Overseas) passport as a valid document on the ability of Hong Kongers with a British National (Overseas) passport to access their pensions.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
We are aware of the difficulties British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) status holders are experiencing in seeking early withdrawal of their pension held by the Mandatory Provident Fund in Hong Kong. The root of the problem is the Chinese Government's decision not to recognise the BN(O) passport as a valid identity document in Hong Kong.
The Government firmly opposes the discrimination of BN(O)s in this way and will continue to urge the Hong Kong authorities and all relevant bodies to facilitate early drawdown of funds as is the case for other Hong Kong residents who move overseas permanently. The conduct of UK banking institutions is not a matter for the Home Office, but I have asked my officials to raise this matter with HM Treasury.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of his Department's revised guidance on the Ukraine Family Scheme visa.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
Caseworker guidance is reviewed periodically to ensure it remains relevant, accurate and aligned to the emerging development of the schemes over time.
Updates were made on 7 December to both the Ukraine Family Scheme and Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship scheme guidance in line with changes to the biometric requirements, providing clarification to eligibility criteria.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the visa application process for people from El Salvador.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Office contracts two commercial partners, VFS and TLS Contact, to operate its global network of Visa Application Centres (VACs) who provide application centres in over 230 locations across 138 countries.
There is a biometric enrolment location in San Salvador, run by our commercial partner VFS, which normally operates two to four times per month, in line with seasonal demand, at which customers can submit their UK visa application. This provision is sufficient to meet demand levels. VFS monitor capacity and provide additional dates as necessary, to ensure appointment capacity is in line with customer demand. Customers are able to purchase a service in advance of their appointment which allows them to keep their passport with them whilst their visa application is being processed, if they require it for other purposes.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the potential merits of extending the Tier 5 Youth Mobility Scheme to (a) further European countries and (b) South and Central American countries.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
We remain open to negotiating Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS) arrangements with other countries and territories. However, as each YMS is subject to a bilateral, reciprocal agreement which also provides benefit to UK nationals, with the detail negotiated and agreed between the relevant parties, we are unable to disclose the status of negotiations as they occur. Further details of additional YMS agreements will be announced once they are concluded.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what Border Control procedures are in place for British (a) Ambassadors and (b) High Commissioners when they re-enter the UK.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
British Ambassadors and High Commissioners are required to satisfactorily establish their identity and nationality when entering the UK in the same way as any other British citizen.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with her Peruvian counterpart on undocumented migrants from that country who attempt to enter the UK.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Secretary has not had any conversations with her Peruvian counterpart on the issue of undocumented migrants attempting to enter the UK.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of reports that the UN Office on Drugs and Crime registered a 43 percent increase in coca cultivation in Colombia in 2021 on drug-related crime in the UK.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
The threats to the UK from illicit drugs and the implications of these threats for law enforcement are kept under regular assessment.
In December 2021, the Government launched its ten-year drugs plan to cut crime and save lives. As part of this, £300 million has been allocated to fund activity to break drug supply chains from end-to-end.
This includes restricting upstream flow by expanding the networks of the National Crime Agency and Border Force officers posted to source and transit countries, ensuring we remain agile in the face of changing threats.
Alongside a strong law enforcement response, the UK is leveraging its diplomatic and overseas policy networks to secure political support from other governments and build our partners’ capacity to address the critical enablers of drug supplies into the UK.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to make an assessment of the potential merits of including Afghan journalists previously employed by the BBC in the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy and Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme for British Council staff and contractors.
Answered by Kevin Foster
To qualify for relocation under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP), Afghan nationals must have worked in exposed, meaningful or enabling roles in ways which made a material difference to the delivery of the UK mission in Afghanistan (e.g. linguistic services to UK Armed Forces). Eligibility for the scheme has been extended several times since it launched in April 2021 and there are no plans to extend it further.
Approximately 100 Afghan journalists have been evacuated and brought to safety since Operation Pitting, in August 2021.
The Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) will provide up to 20,000 women, children, and others at risk with a safe and legal route to resettle in the UK.
Under Pathway three of ACRS in the first year, the government is honouring its commitment to resettlement by offering places for up to 1,500 eligible individuals from the following groups: British Council contractors, Gardaworld contractors or Chevening alumni.
Beyond the first year of the third pathway, the government will work with international partners and NGOs to welcome wider groups of Afghans at risk.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 27 June 2022 to Question 23234, under which scheme 100 Afghan journalists been relocated to the UK; and what type of visas they have been granted.
Answered by Kevin Foster
100 Afghan journalists have been brought to safety during and after OP Pitting under the ACRS through pathway one.
They were granted Leave Outside the Rules (LOTR) for 6 months and will be granted Indefinite Leave to Remain under the scheme.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to provide visas to Afghan journalists who have worked for the BBC.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Government responded swiftly to the fast-moving and challenging events in Afghanistan, including supporting the largest and fastest evacuation in recent history. We helped over 15,000 people to safety from Afghanistan in August 2021 and we continue to do all we can to enable those who are eligible to relocate to the UK.
There have been approximately 100 Afghan journalists who have been evacuated and brought to safety since 1 August 2021.