Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the report entitled, Missing the safety net, published by Refugee Action, what processes her Department has in place to escalate support for applications that have been delayed beyond her Department's guidelines on the processing of applications; and if she will make a statement.

The report relates to applications from failed asylum seekers for support under section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. We aim to decide most of these applications within 5 working days, or 2 days of the Home Office reviewing the application if the person is vulnerable, but some take longer because of the need to make further enquiries to establish that the person is eligible to receive the support.

The issue has been discussed with the authors of the report and a process through which voluntary sector organisations can escalate concerns about delays in individual cases has been agreed.