Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what methodology the Government’s review of the restrictions on asylum seekers' rights to work, initiated in December 2018, will use to determine the potential fiscal effects of any changes to those rules.
Asylum seekers are allowed to work in the UK if their claim has been outstanding for 12 months or more, through no fault of their own.
Those permitted to work are restricted to jobs on the Shortage Occupation List, which is based on expert advice from the independent Migration Advisory Committee.
The Home Office is currently reviewing policy on the right to work for asylum seekers. As part of the review the Home Office will assess the fiscal effects of changes to the policy. Once the review is completed and published, the Home Office will be able to answer questions in respect of its methodology.