Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has considered continuing the Gaza student scholarship scheme.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government is reviewing the impact of the policy implemented to date. Any decision on future support will depend on the evolving international situation. We will continue to keep the policy under review.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of increases in requirements for (a) visa approvals and (b) course enrolments on the higher education sector.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
An assessment of the potential impact of the increase in the requirements of each Basic Compliance Assessment (BCA) metric can be found at Restoring control over the immigration system: technical annex (accessible) - GOV.UK. This provides an estimate of the number of Higher Education Institutions that could be affected, and offers an initial, illustrative analysis of its impact on migration inflows.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to evacuate the dependents of students with UK scholarships as well as those students.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government is prioritising those with fully-funded, verifiable, scholarships commencing in the autumn term. This decision has been made for these students due to their potential role in rebuilding Gaza in the future.
I refer the Honourable Member to the then-Home Secretary’s oral statement to the House of Commons on 1 September 2025 on strengthening border security and reforms to the asylum system. Further details will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her Department's White Paper entitled Restoring Control over the Immigration System, published on 12 May 2025, when she plans to publish further information on the expansion to the points-based system for immigration.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
As part of our Plan for Change, this Government is taking decisive action to bring net migration down and restore control over the immigration system.
In July we began implementing the first set of reforms outlined in the Immigration White Paper – Restoring Control over the Immigration System. These reforms represent a fundamental shift in the UK’s approach to immigration, focusing on higher skills, lower numbers and tighter controls. Our approach will end the UK’s reliance on overseas recruitment and ensure the system better supports investment in the domestic workforce.
The July package of measures included:
By the end of this year, we will also:
Over the course of this Parliament, we will continue to roll out additional measures to further strengthen our immigration system. Details of these will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of using artificial intelligence to translate documents supporting (a) visa and (b) asylum applications.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Whilst the Home Office is committed to using technology and innovation to make the asylum system more efficient, the Home Office does not currently use Artificial Intelligence to translate documents submitted as evidence in asylum claims.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department accepts documents for (a) visa and (b) asylum applications translated by artificial intelligence.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Whilst the Home Office is committed to using technology and innovation to make the asylum system more efficient, the Home Office does not currently use Artificial Intelligence to translate documents submitted as evidence in asylum claims.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of leaving the Dublin Convention on the numbers of illegal migrants entering the UK.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Dublin III Regulation ceased to apply to the UK from January 2021 onwards. Any assessment of the potential impact of that change would have been for the previous government to make at the time in question.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what engagement she has had with the higher education sector ahead of the publication of the Legal Immigration White Paper.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We keep all aspects of the immigration system under regular review, consulting with a wide range of experts and stakeholders.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
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 the increase in the earnings threshold for overseas workers on the care sector.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Honourable Gentlemen to the Home Secretary’s written ministerial statement on 30 July 2024.
Asked by: Stephen Gethins (Scottish National Party - Arbroath and Broughty Ferry)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the impact of the increase in the earnings threshold for overseas workers on the higher education sector.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Honourable Gentlemen to the Home Secretary’s written ministerial statement on 30 July 2024.