Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what funds his Department has spent on advertisements promoting online passport applications in each of the last three years; and what funds he plans to spend on promoting online passport applications in the next financial year.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
HM Passport Office (HMPO) has an ambitious transformation plan to increase digital applications, helping to reduce operational expenditure by removing paper and customer errors from the process.
In June 2016, HMPO launched its first fully digital online application service for adults renewing their passport. This launch was supported by no cost communications activity, including PR and stakeholder engagement. Last financial year (2017/18) a small scale paid search campaign, costing £9,665, was trialled to encourage customers to use the online application channel. In this financial year (2018/19) a marketing campaign, costing £536,639.04, was delivered via radio and digital advertising.
A re-launch of the marketing campaign in 2019/20 has been planned, forecast at £1m. This activity is dependent on the outcome of the EU Exit withdrawal agreement.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department plans to remove the Post Office's role in undertaking the Passport Check and Send service.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
There are no plans to remove the Post Office's role in undertaking the Passport Check & Send service. The service has just been expanded to provide a digital version of Check & Send to customers, and the agreement with Post Office Ltd is in the process of being extended by a further two years until 31 August 2022
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 22 November 2018 to Question 192832, whether EU citizens with Leave to Land who do not apply for pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme will maintain the same rights once the UK has left the EU.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
A person granted leave to land under earlier (repealed) legislation is treated for the purposes of the Immigration Act 1971 as having been granted leave to enter the UK. Existing leave to enter is not affected by the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union. EU citizens with limited or indefinite leave to enter do not need to apply for status under the EU Settlement Scheme, but they may do so if they wish.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 22 November 2018 to Question 192832, whether people who do not apply for pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme will maintain the same rights once the UK has left the EU.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
We have agreed with the European Union (EU) that there will be no change to the current rights of EU citizens and their family members living in the UK until the end of the planned implementation period on 31 December 2020. The deadline for applications to the EU Settlement Scheme by those who are resident here by the end of 2020 will be 30 June 2021. Where someone misses the deadline for their application for a good reason, they will be given a reasonable further period in which to apply.
If an application is not made by the deadline and a UK immigration status not obtained, the individual will not be protected by the Withdrawal Agreement and will be subject to the requirements of the future immigration system.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether people who have been granted leave to land will have to apply for settled status once the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The Immigration Act 1971 provides that a person granted leave to land under earlier (repealed) legislation is treated for the purposes of the 1971 Act as having been granted leave to enter.
Resident EU citizens and their family members with limited or indefinite leave to enter the UK will not need to apply for pre-settled or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme once the UK has left the EU. They will be able to do so if they wish and there will be no application fee for settled status where an applicant has valid indefinite leave to enter.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications by Syrian nationals for UK visitor visas have been (a) received and (b) granted in each annual quarter for the last three years.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The latest quarterly Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas are published in ‘Immigration Statistics, April - June 2016’, available from the Home Office website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-statistics
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether it is her Department's policy to immediately reject visa applications based on the applicant's nationality.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
It is not Home Office policy to refuse an application for a visa on the basis of an applicant’s nationality. All visa applications are considered on their merits, in accordance with the Immigration Rules.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department's policy is on the granting of visas to Syrian passport holders to enter the UK on a short term basis.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
It is not Home Office policy to refuse an application for a visa on the basis of an applicant’s nationality. All visa applications are considered on their merits, in accordance with the Immigration Rules.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what number and proportion of (a) overall visa applications and (b) applications from Syrian passport holders have been rejected by her Department in the last year.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The latest quarterly Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas are published in ‘Immigration Statistics, April - June 2016’, available from the Home Office website at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-statistics
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reasons applicants are charged to apply for (a) naturalisation to become a British citizen and (b) registration to become a British citizen; and how those charges are calculated.
Answered by James Brokenshire
Fees for applications for naturalisation and registration for British citizenship are charged to cover the cost of processing such applications and contribute to the wider costs of operating the border, immigration and citizenship system. Fee levels are set in accordance with sections 68 to 70 of the Immigration Act 2014, and take account of a range of factors including the administration costs associated with an application and the various benefits and entitlements that applicants may receive from British citizenship.