Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if her Department has reviewed the suitability of resources, including trained personnel and appropriate equipment, used by UK Border Force when searching for and rescuing migrants in the English Channel.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The operational response to these dangerous, illegal, and unnecessary crossings of the Channel by migrants in small boats is led by Border Security Command’s Maritime and Small Boat Operations. The personnel and equipment needs for that command are kept under regular review to ensure that resource matches risk.
Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) operations in the Channel, rescuing migrants from unseaworthy vessels, are coordinated and directed by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA). BSC Maritime and Small Boat Operations work closely with DfT and MCA (the regulator) to ensure safety and legal compliance.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what percentage of absconders encountered by police have been detained by police in each of the last three years.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics.
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user requests, the public resources required to compile the statistics, and importantly the quality and availability of data.
An individual who is pursuing a legal appeal or has submitted a last–minute claim would not usually be considered to be an absconder, as they would no longer be out of contact with the department. Similarly, requests for travel documentation would not usually take place at the point that someone is considered to be an absconder.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many refused asylum seekers are classified as absconders.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics.
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user requests, the public resources required to compile the statistics, and importantly the quality and availability of data.
An individual who is pursuing a legal appeal or has submitted a last–minute claim would not usually be considered to be an absconder, as they would no longer be out of contact with the department. Similarly, requests for travel documentation would not usually take place at the point that someone is considered to be an absconder.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what percentage of absconders have remained in the UK as a result of (a) unresolved legal appeals and (b) last-minute claims in each of the last three years.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics.
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user requests, the public resources required to compile the statistics, and importantly the quality and availability of data.
An individual who is pursuing a legal appeal or has submitted a last–minute claim would not usually be considered to be an absconder, as they would no longer be out of contact with the department. Similarly, requests for travel documentation would not usually take place at the point that someone is considered to be an absconder.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what percentage of people on immigration bail absconded again in each of the last three years.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics.
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user requests, the public resources required to compile the statistics, and importantly the quality and availability of data.
An individual who is pursuing a legal appeal or has submitted a last–minute claim would not usually be considered to be an absconder, as they would no longer be out of contact with the department. Similarly, requests for travel documentation would not usually take place at the point that someone is considered to be an absconder.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many absconders released on bail have committed further offences in each of the last three years.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics.
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user requests, the public resources required to compile the statistics, and importantly the quality and availability of data.
An individual who is pursuing a legal appeal or has submitted a last–minute claim would not usually be considered to be an absconder, as they would no longer be out of contact with the department. Similarly, requests for travel documentation would not usually take place at the point that someone is considered to be an absconder.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the estimated average time is before an absconder going missing and a police report is filed.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The information requested is not currently available from published statistics.
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user requests, the public resources required to compile the statistics, and importantly the quality and availability of data.
An individual who is pursuing a legal appeal or has submitted a last–minute claim would not usually be considered to be an absconder, as they would no longer be out of contact with the department. Similarly, requests for travel documentation would not usually take place at the point that someone is considered to be an absconder.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent steps her Department has taken to close migrant hotels.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
At its peak under the previous government, around 400 hotels were used to accommodate asylum seekers – costing £9 million per day. That figure is now under 200 - the government remains committed no longer using hotels to accommodate asylum seekers by the end of this Parliament.
Hotel closures are prioritised based on a wide range of criteria. The hotel exit plan will continue to be carefully managed to ensure that all supported asylum seekers are accommodated in suitable alternative accommodation, including large sites, elsewhere in the estate.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many migrant hotels have been closed in the last year.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
At its peak under the previous government, around 400 hotels were used to accommodate asylum seekers – costing £9 million per day. That figure is now under 200 - the government remains committed no longer using hotels to accommodate asylum seekers by the end of this Parliament.
Data on the number of supported asylum seekers in accommodation, including hotels, and by local authority can be found within the Asy_D11 tab for our most recent statistics release: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the total cost of redundancies that will be incurred as a result of the decision to abolish Police and Crime Commissioners.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
No civil servants will lose their jobs as a result of the decision. The Home Office will work with Offices of Police and Crime Commissioners and local authorities on local transition arrangements, including any impact on local staffing, ahead of implementation in 2028. Following the approach taken for previous transfers of police governance in mayoral areas, costs of transition are expected to be met locally through existing budgets.
It will be for local areas to determine the staffing they need under these new arrangements and no decisions have yet been taken on this. We expect new arrangements to be lower cost as a result of rationalising support arrangements and joining up local service delivery, which can fund more neighbourhood police on the beat across the country.