Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of the accessibility of the EU Exit: ID document check android app for applicants.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
EU citizens make a huge contribution to our economy and society, and we want them to stay. The EU Settlement Scheme enables them to do so. The ‘EU Exit: Identity Document Check’ app is an optional aspect of the service which allows applicants to prove their identity remotely using their biometric identity document and an android smartphone device.
The app requires applicants to complete four quick steps – to take a photo of their identity document photo page, read the chip, complete a liveness check and take a photo of themselves using the device camera. The app process can be completed by the applicant alone, or with support from a third party, for example the applicant can choose to take the photo themselves using the front facing camera, or have a third party take the photo using the back camera.
So far, the app has undergone two separate accessibility audits, the first prior to the beta test phase and the second during the testing phase. The app development team have implemented recommendations from both audits, for example enabling users to utilise accessibility tools native to their device. User Research is ongoing, including with users with specific accessibility needs and those at the lower end of the digital inclusion scale.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to promote the EU settlement scheme to children of non-UK EU citizens.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
We are working in partnership with vulnerable group representatives, local authorities and other experts to make sure we reach everyone.
We have established a children’s specific content steering group to develop age-appropriate communications content and material for children as part of the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS) communications programme.
This group has members from a range of children’s rights bodies including legal experts, academics specialising in European children’s rights and communications professionals.
The group recognises the need to create communications materials that provide greater detail on requirements for children to apply to the EU Settlement Scheme (as well as organisations making applications on behalf of children). Any materials produced are also intended to empower children and young people to understand their legal rights as EU citizens in the UK.
The intention is also to include children in the development of the content and market-test our products with children, adhering to all ethical standards, to ensure they are fit-for-purpose.
Furthermore, we are engaging regularly with local authorities regarding their responsibilities for looked after children who are impacted by the introduction of the EU Settlement Scheme and are providing guidance to help them manage these often complex cases.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to tackle incidents of knife crime on the railways.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The chances of being a victim of crime, on the railways or elsewhere, remain extremely low. However, the Government is very concerned about increases in knife crime and its impact on victims, families and communities. The action we are taking is set out in our Serious Violence Strategy and includes new legislation in the Offensive Weapons Bill and continuing police action under Operation Sceptre. The British Transport Police also participate in Operation Sceptre and we expect the next national week of action to take place in March 2019.
More widely, we have also been supporting the #knifefree media campaign to raise awareness of the consequences of knife crime and discourage young people from carrying knives more generally. The Serious Violence Strategy includes a strong focus on prevention and early intervention to stop young people being drawn in to knife crime. Our Early Intervention Youth Fund of £22 million is already supporting 29 projects in England and Wales. Over £17 million has already been allocated to projects delivering interventions to young people at risk of criminal involvement, gang exploitation and county lines.
We are supporting 68 small community projects this year through the anti-knife crime Community Fund. In addition, we have extended our support for Redthread in hospital emergency departments to introduce its “teachable moment” youth violence intervention work to hospi-tals in Birmingham and Nottingham.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans the Government has for the introduction of an appeal process to the EU Settled Status scheme.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
If the Withdrawal Agreement is agreed the Government will implement that agreement, including appeal rights, through the Withdrawal Agreement Bill.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the Government's Windrush initiatives.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
At the HASC evidence session on Tuesday 15 May, the Home Secretary committed to providing the HASC with regular updates on the work of the department in relation to Windrush. The most recent update was published on 17 December 2018 and Annex A provides a Financial Overview of the Windrush Initiative up to and including Period 7 of the Financial Year 2018/19.
Data would only be accurate at the time it was generated, with any answer potentially being inaccurate at the time of release. Providing a running commentary on the estimate of the cost to the public purse would not be cost and resource effective.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the effect of the recent reduction in the discount rate for public service pension schemes on the financial stability of fire services.
Answered by Nick Hurd
The Government proposed a change to the discount rate in September. This change was confirmed at the Budget in October. Provisional valuation results suggest employers will need to pay more into schemes from 2019/20.
At the Budget, the Treasury allocated extra funding to the reserve for 2019/20 to cover the unexpected additional costs arising from this change to the discount rate, including for fire. Provisional results indicate fire will pay an additional £10 million next year.
Fire services have the resources to do their work. At March 2018 the standalone FRAs held £545 million in reserves, equivalent to 42 percent of the core spending power.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many notices of removal from the UK were issued in error by his Department in the last 10 years.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
Individuals who have been refused leave to enter at a port and those in the United Kingdom without leave to remain, following a refusal decision, will be notified of their liability to removal. These notices will also advise them of the need to raise any reasons they may have to stay in the United Kingdom as soon as reasonably practicable.
An assessment of the number of times these notices were issued in error would require the examination of individual records.
I am sorry but the information requested is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Windrush generation cases there are in (a) North Lanarkshire and (b) Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill constituency.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The data requested is not available. Information relating to individual Windrush migrants is not recorded by constituency.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress her Department has made on the implementation of the asylum and resettlement strategy; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
We continue to engage with key stakeholders, including NGOs, International Organisations and local authorities on the UK’s approach to asylum and resettlement, including the approach to family reunion for refugees.
The Government has committed to rebalancing the system to focus more resource on the most vulnerable refugees through our aid programmes and resettlement whilst ensuring the in country system provides protection for those in need but also ensures those with no lawful basis to stay in the UK are returned. Our policies and approach must reflect the capacity and resources of Government and local authorities.
Asked by: Hugh Gaffney (Labour - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to amend the rules on refugee family reunion to include the extended definition of family in the Dublin III Regulation.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The UK Immigration Rules have a comprehensive framework for refugees and their families to be safely reunited in the UK. Our family reunion policy allows immediate family members of those granted protection here to reunite with them. The Immigration Rules also provide for relatives with protection in the UK to sponsor children in serious and compelling circumstances. The Mandate resettlement scheme also allows those recognised by the UNCHR as refugees to join close family members here in the UK.
In addition, there is provision in the policy to grant visas outside the Rules in exceptional circumstances, which caters for extended family members who otherwise do not qualify under the Rules.
We do not believe there are unnecessary barriers to family reunion for refugees. Over the last five years there have been 24,700 family reunion visas issued –and this is in addition to the numbers granted asylum here or resettled here under our resettlement schemes.
We are listening carefully to concerns raised on this issue by Non-Governmental Organisations and others. We are currently reviewing our approach to family reunion as part of the Government’s wider asylum and resettlement policy strategy. We will be following the passage of the Family Reunion Family Member’s Bill closely and will continue our productive discussions in this area.