Asked by: Vicky Ford (Conservative - Chelmsford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to help prevent young people being groomed via the internet to commit crime.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
We are committed to keeping children safe online and are delivering a number of initiatives that support that objective. For example, we are investing up to £145m over three years in our County Lines Programme to crack down on the county lines gangs exploiting our children and young people. Through this Programme we are developing a better understanding of how to disrupt online activity that is aimed at recruiting and exploiting children and young people.
The Online Safety Act 2023 is a key piece of legislation to keep children safe. There are a number of priority offences in the Act which relate to child criminal exploitation such as drug related offences, sexual exploitation and weapons and firearms supply offences. Technology companies must take proactive measures and use systems and processes to remove and limit people’s exposure to related content.
Asked by: Vicky Ford (Conservative - Chelmsford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether Sudanese applicants who were notified that they had been selected for Chevening scholarships will be granted visas to the UK.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Student visa applications for Chevening scholars will be considered on their individual merits and in line with immigration rules.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office have confirmed that Sudanese nationals who have been offered a Chevening award for the 2023-24 academic year and are unable to take up the scholarship due to the conflict and travel restrictions are able to defer their award to the 2024-25 academic year.
Asked by: Vicky Ford (Conservative - Chelmsford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle street crime against women and girls.
Answered by Sarah Dines
We remain committed to delivering our Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy.
We have allocated £125 million across England and Wales through the Safer Streets Fund and the Safety of Women at Night Fund, including £550,000 investment into the constituency of My Right Honourable Friend, the Member for Chelmsford.
The Government is supporting my Right Honourable Friend the Member for Tunbridge Wells’s ‘Protection from Sex-Based Harassment in Public Bill’, which would make public sexual harassment a specific offence.
Asked by: Vicky Ford (Conservative - Chelmsford)
Question to the Home Office:
What steps is he taking to divert young people away from violent crime.
Answered by Sajid Javid
Diverting young people away from crime is at the heart of the Serious Violence Strategy.
I have just awarded £17.7m to support 29 projects working with young people through the Early Intervention Youth Fund,and I am setting up a new £200m Youth Endowment Fund to provide long term support to stop children getting involved in crime and violence.