Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have (1) to provide visas to Afghan women at risk, especially judges, lawyers, MPs, journalists and human rights defenders, and (2) to work with domestic and international partners on identifying such women.

The Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS), announced on 18 August, will provide those put at risk by recent events in Afghanistan with a route to safety. The scheme will prioritise:

• those who have assisted the UK efforts in Afghanistan and stood up for values such as democracy, women’s rights and freedom of speech, rule of law (for example, judges, women’s rights activists, academics, journalists); and

• vulnerable people, including women and girls at risk, and members of minority groups at risk (including ethnic and religious minorities and LGBT+).

In delivering the ACRS, the Government will work with the UN Refugee Agency, UNHCR and other international partners in the region to identify and resettle people at risk, including women and girls.