Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the potential cost to the public purse of refitting the Bibby Stockholm barge in Falmouth Docks to accommodate asylum seekers; and whether this cost has increased since work began.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Cost information is prospective and commercially sensitive, and as such is not available to be released. The pressure on the asylum system has continued to grow and requires us to look at a range of accommodation options which offer better value for money for taxpayers than hotels.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the potential cost to the public purse of housing asylum seekers on the Bibby Stockholm barge; and whether this cost can be broken down per asylum seeker.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Cost information is prospective and commercially sensitive, and as such is not available to be released. The pressure on the asylum system from small boat arrivals has continued to grow and requires us to look at a range of accommodation options which are more appropriate and offer better value for the taxpayer than expensive hotels.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department conducted a structural survey of the Bibby Stockholm before it underwent refitting in Falmouth Docks.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Bibby Stockholm is now in Falmouth where it is undergoing a statutory inspection along with any necessary refurbishment and general maintenance ahead of its berthing in Portland in the coming weeks. It will not be used to house asylum seekers whilst in Falmouth.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to use Falmouth Docks to refit more barges to house asylum seekers.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
We do not comment on individual sites. The Home Office are assessing all suitable options for accommodation.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her original timescale was for refitting the Bibby Stockholm barge in Falmouth Docks to accommodate asylum seekers; and whether this timescale has changed since work began.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Bibby Stockholm will arrive in Portland in early July and asylum seekers are expected to be moved onto the Bibby Stockholm from mid-July onwards.
It will be in place initially for 18 months but kept under review. The Bibby Stockholm is now in Falmouth where it is undergoing a statutory inspection along with any necessary refurbishment and general maintenance ahead of its berthing in Portland in the coming weeks. It will not be used to house asylum seekers whilst in Falmouth.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2023 to Question 152302 on Refugees: Afghanistan, how many Afghan citizens are living in temporary accommodation in the UK; and how many and what proportion of these are children.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
9,483 people, around half of whom are children, are currently living in hotel or serviced accommodation. This figure changes frequently as new arrivals enter the UK and others move into settled accommodation.
The above is the best available operational data, as of 31st December 2022.
More information on those that we are temporarily accommodating in hotels can be viewed at:
Afghan Resettlement Programme: operational data - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of Afghan citizens who have arrived in the UK since August 2021 have been allocated (a) permanent housing, (b) non-hotel based temporary accommodation and (c) hotel-based accommodation.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
We have been working at pace, alongside c.350 local authorities across the UK, to support Afghan families into homes of their own, so that they can settle into their local communities, feel safe and independent and rebuild their lives in the UK.
The recent update to the published 'Afghan Resettlement: Operational Data', shows that, as of 23rd February 2023, 8,565 people have moved into a home, and a further 590 people have been matched to a home and are waiting to move in. This does not include families who have made their own accommodation arrangements.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many family members of Afghans who came to the UK under priority one of the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy scheme have arrived in the UK.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
We are unable to provide the data requested for family members of those relocated under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP). However, the latest quarterly Immigration Statistics publications show that, as of 23rd February 2023, 11,212 people have been relocated to the UK under the ARAP so far.
The Government remains committed to providing protection for vulnerable and at-risk people fleeing Afghanistan. The situation is very complex and presents significant challenges, including how those who are eligible for resettlement in the UK can leave the country. This includes eligible immediate family members of those being resettled under both the ARAP and the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS).
The Government’s family reunion policy allows those recognised as refugees or granted humanitarian protection in the UK to sponsor family members, provided they formed part of a family unit prior to the refugee sponsor's departure to seek protection.
Those who are not offered resettlement under the ACRS or ARAP will need to apply to come to the UK under our existing economic or family migration rules.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth Sutton and Devonport)
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 implementing a family reunion scheme for Afghans on similar terms to the Ukraine Family Scheme.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
We are unable to provide the data requested for family members of those relocated under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP). However, the latest quarterly Immigration Statistics publications show that, as of 23rd February 2023, 11,212 people have been relocated to the UK under the ARAP so far.
The Government remains committed to providing protection for vulnerable and at-risk people fleeing Afghanistan. The situation is very complex and presents significant challenges, including how those who are eligible for resettlement in the UK can leave the country. This includes eligible immediate family members of those being resettled under both the ARAP and the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS).
The Government’s family reunion policy allows those recognised as refugees or granted humanitarian protection in the UK to sponsor family members, provided they formed part of a family unit prior to the refugee sponsor's departure to seek protection.
Those who are not offered resettlement under the ACRS or ARAP will need to apply to come to the UK under our existing economic or family migration rules.
Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth Sutton and Devonport)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for permission to (a) enter and (b) remain in the UK made by family members of Afghan citizens who have arrived in the UK under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (i) have been (A) received, (B) granted and (C) refused and (ii) are still awaiting a decision by her Department.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
We are unable to provide the data requested for family members of those relocated under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP). However, the latest quarterly Immigration Statistics publications show that, as of 23rd February 2023, 11,212 people have been relocated to the UK under the ARAP so far.
The Government remains committed to providing protection for vulnerable and at-risk people fleeing Afghanistan. The situation is very complex and presents significant challenges, including how those who are eligible for resettlement in the UK can leave the country. This includes eligible immediate family members of those being resettled under both the ARAP and the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS).
The Government’s family reunion policy allows those recognised as refugees or granted humanitarian protection in the UK to sponsor family members, provided they formed part of a family unit prior to the refugee sponsor's departure to seek protection.
Those who are not offered resettlement under the ACRS or ARAP will need to apply to come to the UK under our existing economic or family migration rules.