Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the timeline is for UK travellers to start having expanded access to EU eGates.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have secured confirmation that there will be no legal barriers to eGates use for UK nationals travelling to and from EU Member States after the introduction of the EU's Entry/Exit System.
But the Prime Minister has been clear that there should be no reason why European countries cannot go further and faster on this now.
We are therefore working with individual Member States at pace to make that transition happen as soon as possible.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of appointing cross-government leadership on the issue of missing persons.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government recognises the need for an effective multi-agency response to missing person investigations and we are clear in our ambition to reduce missing incidents and safeguard those vulnerable to going missing. Missing children and adults represent a concern which spans many cross-Governmental priorities and policy areas. The Home Office is committed to working with the Department for Education and Department for Health and Social Care and other relevant departments; sending a clear message that missing needs a whole-system response.
Repeat missing incidents are often a red flag for a number of the harms, such as child sexual or criminal exploitation. The Home Office is heavily invested in supporting and protecting vulnerable people, particularly children and young people from all forms of harm.
The Home Office and Department for Education have been supporting the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) lead for Missing Persons in the development of a 'Missing Children from Care' framework, which has been piloted in West Yorkshire. This framework outlines good practice that can be adopted by local areas when setting up their own multi-agency protocols for the strategic and operational response to a missing incident, with an aim to ensure that the appropriate safeguarding partner responds in the best interest of the missing person.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department plans to take to reduce the number of repeat missing incidents amongst children.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government recognises the need for an effective multi-agency response to missing person investigations and we are clear in our ambition to reduce missing incidents and safeguard those vulnerable to going missing. Missing children and adults represent a concern which spans many cross-Governmental priorities and policy areas. The Home Office is committed to working with the Department for Education and Department for Health and Social Care and other relevant departments; sending a clear message that missing needs a whole-system response.
Repeat missing incidents are often a red flag for a number of the harms, such as child sexual or criminal exploitation. The Home Office is heavily invested in supporting and protecting vulnerable people, particularly children and young people from all forms of harm.
The Home Office and Department for Education have been supporting the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) lead for Missing Persons in the development of a 'Missing Children from Care' framework, which has been piloted in West Yorkshire. This framework outlines good practice that can be adopted by local areas when setting up their own multi-agency protocols for the strategic and operational response to a missing incident, with an aim to ensure that the appropriate safeguarding partner responds in the best interest of the missing person.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the average processing time for Disclosure and Barring Service checks conducted through Sussex Police.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) is operationally independent from the Home Office. Accordingly, the Home Office does not hold the information requested on the average processing time for DBS checks conducted through Sussex Police.
My officials have asked the DBS to write to you to provide you with the information you have requested.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 airside transit electronic travel authorisation on the UK's international competitiveness.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme was launched to enhance our ability to screen travellers upstream and stop those who pose a threat from travelling to the UK.
ETAs form part of our long-term plan for a more efficient UK border, with a greater number of passengers able to benefit from automation and other technological advancements.
We continue to engage positively with industry and support the aviation sector in evaluating the impact of ETAs on passengers and airport services.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help prevent joint mortgages being used as a method of financial abuse.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government recognises the devastating impact financial and economic abuse can have on victims, which extends far beyond the impact to their finances and includes the use of joint mortgages to control or exploit victims.
We continue to work closely with and fund organisations that seek to promote awareness of economic abuse to improve the public and private sector’s response. This includes funding Surviving Economic Abuse (SEA), which supports victims of economic and financial abuse, with £200,000 this year to help improve the response to economic abuse and provide vital support and economic safety for victims.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential impact of the UK leaving the EU on the number of seasonal agricultural workers in each of the countries of the UK.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government keeps the Seasonal Worker route under close ongoing review and is carefully considering the Migration Advisory Committee’s review of the Seasonal Worker route and will announce a detailed response in due course.
The Home Office and the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) monitor the scheme closely to ensure they are operating in the best interests of the UK when it comes to future recruitment. This Government recognises and values the important contribution workers from overseas make to our economy and public services throughout the UK. Legal migration must be controlled and managed through a fair system.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an estimate with Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of existing youth mobility schemes on economic growth in each (a) country of the UK and (b) year since 2010.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Youth Mobility Scheme (YMS) provides valuable cultural exchange opportunities for young people aged 18-30 (or 18-35 for some nationalities) to experience life in another country for up to two or three years, and to make lifelong ties and friendships overseas.
Each YMS is subject to a bilateral, reciprocal arrangement designed to offer cultural exchange. It is therefore not designed, nor intended, to be a route for economic growth or to address any specific labour shortages, although individuals participating in the scheme are able to work if they wish to do so.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to reduce the number of people waiting for enhanced DBS checks to be processed by Sussex Police Force.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and Sussex Police are operationally independent. The prompt completion of enhanced DBS checks is an important part of the safeguarding system, and I understand that several measures have already been introduced to reduce application turnaround times at Sussex Police.
These include the DBS funding additional staff to manage increases in volumes of checks referred to Sussex Police, whilst also funding overtime at the force to minimise the impact while new staff are recruited and trained. Further support is provided through the implementation of training groups and buddies to progress staff through training stages more effectively, the funding of a dedicated training/assessor, and assistance from other forces where appropriate.
The DBS is closely monitoring the performance of Sussex Police and will continue to implement support wherever possible to ensure delays are minimised.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of a new European Youth Mobility scheme.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK currently operates 13 bilateral Youth Mobility Scheme arrangements, which allow young people aged 18-30 (18-35 for some nationals), to live, work and study in the UK for up to two years, with some nationals eligible to apply for a third year. Each country is subject to an annual quota, based on a yearly review of outbound UK participants of the scheme.
The European Commission has not approached the UK to consider a new European Youth Mobility Scheme. We will look at proposals on a range of issues, but we will not return to free movement and our focus is on reducing net migration after it rose to record highs.