Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 15 January 2018 to Question 121912, if she will publish the template grant agreement that is to be the basis for the agreements for the local authority asylum support liaison officers between the Government and successful applicant local authorities.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The Government is committed to ensuring that the transition from government-supported accommodation into mainstream services is as smooth as possible for all those granted refugee status.
My Department will be awarding £1.75 million from the Controlling Migration Fund in 2018/19 to successful English local authorities who applied to trial new ways of supporting new refugees into housing, employment and English language learning.
We have no current plans to publish the template grant agreement letter, although individual local authorities may choose to do so once they have been notified of the outcome of their application.
Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much funding the Government is providing for the Supporting the asylum dispersal scheme; and for how long his Department plans to provide such funding.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The Government is providing funding of up to £2.5 million from the local services element of the Controlling Migration Fund (CMF) which is administered by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).
The funding made available for this scheme comes from an existing MHCLG budget; it is not new funding. Therefore Barnett consequentials do not apply.
The Government has no plans or remit to extend the scheme to local authorities in the devolved nations, which have their own funding arrangements in this area including through the Immigration Enforcement part of the CMF.
Funding is available for 2018/19 and the Government intends to publish its plans for the national evaluation of the scheme in due course. We expect all participating local authorities to contribute to the evaluation exercise so that lessons can be learned to inform the new arrangements for asylum seeker support from 2019.
Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if she will publish details of her plans for the national evaluation exercise of the Supporting the asylum dispersal scheme including but not limited to (a) whether and (b) in what ways evidence from Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales will be collated and applied in the pilot to inform the new arrangements for asylum seeker support across the UK from 2019.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The Government is providing funding of up to £2.5 million from the local services element of the Controlling Migration Fund (CMF) which is administered by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).
The funding made available for this scheme comes from an existing MHCLG budget; it is not new funding. Therefore Barnett consequentials do not apply.
The Government has no plans or remit to extend the scheme to local authorities in the devolved nations, which have their own funding arrangements in this area including through the Immigration Enforcement part of the CMF.
Funding is available for 2018/19 and the Government intends to publish its plans for the national evaluation of the scheme in due course. We expect all participating local authorities to contribute to the evaluation exercise so that lessons can be learned to inform the new arrangements for asylum seeker support from 2019.
Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the Supporting the asylum dispersal scheme will result in Barnett consequentials for the devolved governments in (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Scotland and (c)Wales.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The Government is providing funding of up to £2.5 million from the local services element of the Controlling Migration Fund (CMF) which is administered by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).
The funding made available for this scheme comes from an existing MHCLG budget; it is not new funding. Therefore Barnett consequentials do not apply.
The Government has no plans or remit to extend the scheme to local authorities in the devolved nations, which have their own funding arrangements in this area including through the Immigration Enforcement part of the CMF.
Funding is available for 2018/19 and the Government intends to publish its plans for the national evaluation of the scheme in due course. We expect all participating local authorities to contribute to the evaluation exercise so that lessons can be learned to inform the new arrangements for asylum seeker support from 2019.
Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his Department plans to extend the Supporting the asylum dispersal scheme, or an alternative scheme, to local authorities in (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Scotland and (c) Wales.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The Government is providing funding of up to £2.5 million from the local services element of the Controlling Migration Fund (CMF) which is administered by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).
The funding made available for this scheme comes from an existing MHCLG budget; it is not new funding. Therefore Barnett consequentials do not apply.
The Government has no plans or remit to extend the scheme to local authorities in the devolved nations, which have their own funding arrangements in this area including through the Immigration Enforcement part of the CMF.
Funding is available for 2018/19 and the Government intends to publish its plans for the national evaluation of the scheme in due course. We expect all participating local authorities to contribute to the evaluation exercise so that lessons can be learned to inform the new arrangements for asylum seeker support from 2019.
Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, for what reasons the Supporting the asylum dispersal scheme invitation for funding published on 23 November 2017, issued jointly by his Department and the Home Office is not open to equivalent asylum dispersal local authorities in other regions and constituent parts of the UK; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The Government is providing funding of up to £2.5 million from the local services element of the Controlling Migration Fund (CMF) which is administered by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).
The funding made available for this scheme comes from an existing MHCLG budget; it is not new funding. Therefore Barnett consequentials do not apply.
The Government has no plans or remit to extend the scheme to local authorities in the devolved nations, which have their own funding arrangements in this area including through the Immigration Enforcement part of the CMF.
Funding is available for 2018/19 and the Government intends to publish its plans for the national evaluation of the scheme in due course. We expect all participating local authorities to contribute to the evaluation exercise so that lessons can be learned to inform the new arrangements for asylum seeker support from 2019.
Asked by: Stuart C McDonald (Scottish National Party - Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, which local authorities in England will be eligible to apply for the Supporting the asylum dispersal scheme; what criteria determines eligibility; which local authorities applied for the scheme by its deadline of 21 December 2017; what the outcome is of such applications; what the contractual requirements on local authorities are in terms of refused asylum seekers, and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government invited local authorities with the highest numbers of asylum seekers receiving Government support to apply to the scheme. Ten local authorities applied by the 21 December 2017 deadline – Bradford, Coventry, Kirklees, Leeds, Liverpool, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Nottingham, Sheffield and Wolverhampton. Additional applications have been received from Birmingham and Sandwell. Successful local authorities will be notified in due course.
Participating local authorities are expected to work with asylum seekers awaiting a decision and make them aware of the support available once a decision has been made, as well as preparing them for the consequences of a negative decision by supporting a voluntary return to their home countries.