Asked by: Jess Phillips (Labour - Birmingham Yardley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that humanitarian support to Ukraine includes targeted child protection and psychosocial support for children.
Answered by Leo Docherty
The UK has contributed £20 million to UNICEF's appeal for Ukraine and the region. This support has helped UNICEF provide targeted child protection, formal and non-formal education to over 850,000 children, as well as access for Ukrainian children to essential services including health, nutrition, specialist trauma, psychosocial support and Gender Based Violence services. An assessment of UNICEF delivery will be published in the Annual Review of the UK's humanitarian support this year.
Asked by: Jess Phillips (Labour - Birmingham Yardley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to include psychosocial support for children in its Ukraine response; and what steps his Department has taken with the Home Office to help ensure that vulnerable children from Ukraine are protected during their journey to the UK.
Answered by Leo Docherty
The UK has provided humanitarian funding to UNICEF (£20 million), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (£25 million) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (£15 million) to support people and children in need in Ukraine and the surrounding region. Our funding supports provision of psychosocial support, including through Blue Dot safe spaces along major crossing points and transit routes.
FCDO has regular dialogues with Home Office and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on the Homes for Ukraine scheme. The government has issued guidance on GOV.UK for children and for parents and legal guardians of children travelling from Ukraine.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homes-for-ukraine-welcome-guide-for-ukrainian-children-under-18
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/homes-for-ukraine-guidance-for-parents-or-legal-guardians-children-and-minors-applying-without-parents#safeguarding-and-welfare
Asked by: Jess Phillips (Labour - Birmingham Yardley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State of 2 March 2023, Official Report, column 950, whether all domestic and sexual violence offenders are considered to pose a high risk of harm; and whether she is taking steps to ensure that convicted perpetrators of domestic and sexual abuse cannot obtain a passport in a new name without the police being consulted.
Answered by Sarah Dines
The Government is determined to ensure the police and other agencies have the tools they need to manage the risk posed by domestic abusers and sex offenders; we are introducing new measures to strengthen protections for victims of these crimes.
Registered sex offenders must notify certain personal details (including their name and intended foreign travel) to the police annually and whenever those details change. Failure to comply is a criminal offence. Additionally, through Sexual Harm Prevention Orders and Sexual Risk Orders a court can place conditions on offenders that pose a risk of sexual harm.
On 20 February, the Home Secretary announced our intention to make offenders sentenced to 12 months or longer for controlling or coercive behaviour eligible for management under Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements. Offenders eligible for MAPPA management are risk assessed and a risk management plan is put in place.
Through the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, we have introduced Domestic Abuse Protection Orders (DAPOs). DAPOs will be able to impose any requirements the court considers necessary to protect an individual from domestic abuse. Those subject to an order will be required to notify their name and address to the police. DAPOs will be piloted for two years from Spring 2024.
The police may place ‘flags’ with HM Passport Office on offenders deemed to pose a risk to the public, so that if they attempt to change their passport details, the police will be consulted. Following an internal review into offender name changes, some immediate actions are being taken forward, including ensuring that law enforcement agencies are fully utilising existing monitoring tools and information sources, including those provided by HMPO.
Asked by: Jess Phillips (Labour - Birmingham Yardley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made on the adequacy of Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) assistance for those suffering from a long-term illness; whether his Department is taking steps to ensure SMI repayments remain sufficient for those suffering from a long-term illness; and whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing alternative mortgage products for those who are in receipt of benefits on a long-term basis.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) provides support for all homeowners who qualify for an income related benefit and unable to meet their mortgage repayments due to short or long-term illness, unemployment, a personal crisis, or other income shock. SMI helps people maintain their existing, reasonable mortgage commitments so they can remain in their home providing effective protection against repossession for as long as they need it.
As announced in the Autumn Statement, from 3rd April, we will extend the support SMI provides by reducing the qualifying period from nine months to three and extending eligibility to Universal Credit (UC) claimants with earnings. These changes will strengthen the protection SMI provides by offering support quicker and to more people. There are no planned further changes.
No assessment has been made of the potential merits of introducing alternative mortgage products for those who are in receipt of benefits on a long-term basis.
Asked by: Jess Phillips (Labour - Birmingham Yardley)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will undertake a review of the Standard Industrial Classification codes that will be eligible for the Energy Bills Discount Scheme; and if he will take steps to include codes (a) 31020 for kitchen manufacturers and (b) 31090 for bathroom manufacturers in that scheme.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
The new Energy Bills Discount Scheme will provide all eligible businesses and other non-domestic energy users across the UK with a discount on high energy bills until 31 March 2024, following the end of the current Energy Bill Relief Scheme. It will also provide businesses in sectors with particularly high levels of energy use and trade intensity with a higher level of support.
We have taken a consistent approach to identifying the most energy and trade intensive sectors, with all sectors that meet agreed thresholds for energy and trade intensity eligible for Energy and Trade Intensive Industries (ETII) support. These thresholds have been set at sectors falling above the 80th percentile for energy intensity and 60th percentile for trade intensity, plus any sectors eligible for the existing energy compensation and exemption schemes.
Through the current Energy Bill Relief Scheme, the Government provided an unprecedented package of support for non-domestic users through this winter. The Government has been clear that such levels of support, unprecedented in its nature and huge scale, were time-limited and intended as a bridge to allow businesses to adapt.
The new scheme therefore strikes a balance between supporting businesses for a further 12 months, from April 2023 to March 2024, and limiting taxpayer’s exposure to volatile energy markets, with a cap set at £5.5 billion based on estimated volumes. This provides long term certainty for businesses and reflects how the scale of the challenge has changed since September last year. We will of course continue to monitor energy prices in the coming months.
Further details on the scheme, including information on eligibility and discount levels, can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/energy-bills-discount-scheme.
Asked by: Jess Phillips (Labour - Birmingham Yardley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much her Department spent on subsistence payments for people awaiting a conclusive grounds decision in the National Referral Mechanism for Modern Slavery in financial years (a) 2019-20, (b) 2020-21, (c) 2021-22 and (d) 2022-23 to date.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Single Competent Authority (SCA) and the Immigration Enforcement Competent Authority (IECA) are currently recruiting a large number of new decision makers across the UK to increase capacity for NRM decision-making and reduce decision making timescales.
The National Referral Mechanism (NRM) does not publish payments made to victims of modern slavery and this does not currently form part of the published NRM statistics.
All victims who consent to receiving support will receive this via the Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract (MSVCC) in England and Wales which is delivered by The Salvation Army. Details of the MSVC Contract can be found in a redacted version of the contract requirements here: Modern Slavery: Statutory Guidance for England and Wales (under s49 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015) and Non-Statutory Guidance for Scotland and Northern Ireland (publishing.service.gov.uk)
All victims who consented to support under the previous Victim Care Contract are eligible for financial support under the same policy and a redacted version of the previous contract requirements can be found here: (https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/e03ceb15-27ad-4bad-b8ae-43dbc1e9481e).
Asked by: Jess Phillips (Labour - Birmingham Yardley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much the Home Office spent on employing caseworkers to make conclusive grounds decisions in the National Referral Mechanism in financial years (a) 2019-20, (b) 2020-21, (c) 2021-22 and (d) 2022-23 to date.
Answered by Sarah Dines
The Single Competent Authority (SCA) and the Immigration Enforcement Competent Authority (IECA) are currently recruiting a large number of new decision makers across the UK to increase capacity for NRM decision-making and reduce decision making timescales.
The National Referral Mechanism (NRM) does not publish payments made to victims of modern slavery and this does not currently form part of the published NRM statistics.
All victims who consent to receiving support will receive this via the Modern Slavery Victim Care Contract (MSVCC) in England and Wales which is delivered by The Salvation Army. Details of the MSVC Contract can be found in a redacted version of the contract requirements here: Modern Slavery: Statutory Guidance for England and Wales (under s49 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015) and Non-Statutory Guidance for Scotland and Northern Ireland (publishing.service.gov.uk)
All victims who consented to support under the previous Victim Care Contract are eligible for financial support under the same policy and a redacted version of the previous contract requirements can be found here (https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/e03ceb15-27ad-4bad-b8ae-43dbc1e9481e).
As of September 2019, following a CG decision, financial support needs for those in support are considered in a Recovery Needs Assessment (RNA) as part of a holistic assessment of recovery need, as per the published RNA policy.”
Asked by: Jess Phillips (Labour - Birmingham Yardley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 19 December 2022 to Question 110727 on Slavery, if she will provide an example of what would be considered a piece of information or evidence that is based in fact in a case of child sexual exploitation; and if she will publish the guidance that decision makers use to identify an objective factor.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The updated Reasonable Grounds Guidance is expected to be published on 30 January 2023 as part of the Modern Slavery: Statutory Guidance for England and Wales (under s49 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015) and Non-Statutory Guidance for Scotland and Northern Ireland. This will contain details of what constitutes an objective factor and how decision makers will use the guidance to consider all referrals, including child victims of sexual exploitation.
We also believe that this builds on and simplifies much of the current guidance to ensure decision making at the Reasonable Grounds stage is robust and consistent while still providing scope to consider instances where a referral may be received with very little additional information.
Asked by: Jess Phillips (Labour - Birmingham Yardley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 14 December 2022 to Question 11027 on Slavery, in what way her Department's new guidance and policy on consideration of evidence differ from what happened previously.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The updated Reasonable Grounds Guidance is expected to be published on 30 January 2023 as part of the Modern Slavery: Statutory Guidance for England and Wales (under s49 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015) and Non-Statutory Guidance for Scotland and Northern Ireland. This will contain details of what constitutes an objective factor and how decision makers will use the guidance to consider all referrals, including child victims of sexual exploitation.
We also believe that this builds on and simplifies much of the current guidance to ensure decision making at the Reasonable Grounds stage is robust and consistent while still providing scope to consider instances where a referral may be received with very little additional information.
Asked by: Jess Phillips (Labour - Birmingham Yardley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Written Statement by the Minister of State for Immigration of 13 December on Update to Modern Slavery Statutory Guidance, HCWS441, what her definition is of objective factors; and how she expects this to affect decisions by case workers.
Answered by Sarah Dines
The updated Reasonable Grounds guidance will mean decision makers now base their assessments on objective factors to determine whether there are reasonable grounds to believe a person is a victim.
An “objective” factor is a piece of information or evidence that is based in fact. This will ensure that decision makers can make timely and robust evidence-backed decisions and that assistance and support are focused on those who most need it.