Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consultation process took place with local authorities in preparation for their policy of bringing 20,000 refugees to the UK by 2020.

We are determined to ensure that no local authority is asked to take more than the local structures are able to cope with. That is why we work closely with local authorities and other partners, including the Local Government Association, to ensure that capacity can be identified and the impact on those taking new cases can be managed in a fair and controlled way.

This is a voluntary scheme whereby local authorities sign up to accept refugees on a voluntary basis. We have asked them to think very carefully about whether they have the infrastructure and support networks needed to ensure the appropriate care and integration of these refugees before they make an offer of places to the Resettlement Team.