Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of eligibility criteria for legal claims relating to section 95 claims on asylum seekers.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Legal aid has been and will continue to be available for asylum cases, for victims of domestic abuse and modern slavery, for separated migrant children and for immigration cases where someone is challenging a detention decision.
Where asylum support is granted, that individual will remain in receipt of asylum support until a decision is taken to discontinue the support. This could be where the person is no longer destitute, their asylum claim has been determined or where they no longer meet the conditions of support. There is no time limit or renewal period.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether financial support is available for the dependents of an individual on immigration detention bail whose right to work has been withdrawn.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The number and type of immigration bail conditions to impose will vary depending on the circumstances of the individual case. If the person being granted immigration bail does not have any leave to enter or remain in the UK, it will be appropriate to impose a bail condition restricting work in the majority of cases.
An asylum seeker, or failed asylum seeker with outstanding protection-based further submissions, whose claim has been outstanding for more than 12 months through no fault of their own, may be granted permission to work. Those who are allowed to work are restricted to jobs on the Shortage Occupation list. Further information is set out in the published HO guidance - Permission to work and volunteering for asylum seekers.
Asylum seekers and failed asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute are eligible for support under section 95 or section 4 of the Immigration & Asylum 1999 Act. This would also include dependents of an asylum seeker or a failed asylum seeker on immigration bail.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether people on immigration detention bail can request restrictions on their right to work be lifted.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The number and type of immigration bail conditions to impose will vary depending on the circumstances of the individual case. If the person being granted immigration bail does not have any leave to enter or remain in the UK, it will be appropriate to impose a bail condition restricting work in the majority of cases.
An asylum seeker, or failed asylum seeker with outstanding protection-based further submissions, whose claim has been outstanding for more than 12 months through no fault of their own, may be granted permission to work. Those who are allowed to work are restricted to jobs on the Shortage Occupation list. Further information is set out in the published HO guidance - Permission to work and volunteering for asylum seekers.
Asylum seekers and failed asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute are eligible for support under section 95 or section 4 of the Immigration & Asylum 1999 Act. This would also include dependents of an asylum seeker or a failed asylum seeker on immigration bail.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether restrictions on the right to work can be lifted while an individual is on immigration detention bail.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The number and type of immigration bail conditions to impose will vary depending on the circumstances of the individual case. If the person being granted immigration bail does not have any leave to enter or remain in the UK, it will be appropriate to impose a bail condition restricting work in the majority of cases.
An asylum seeker, or failed asylum seeker with outstanding protection-based further submissions, whose claim has been outstanding for more than 12 months through no fault of their own, may be granted permission to work. Those who are allowed to work are restricted to jobs on the Shortage Occupation list. Further information is set out in the published HO guidance - Permission to work and volunteering for asylum seekers.
Asylum seekers and failed asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute are eligible for support under section 95 or section 4 of the Immigration & Asylum 1999 Act. This would also include dependents of an asylum seeker or a failed asylum seeker on immigration bail.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she has make an assessment of the potential merits of automatic renewal of Section 95 asylum support applications in the context of the volume of pending asylum claims.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Legal aid has been and will continue to be available for asylum cases, for victims of domestic abuse and modern slavery, for separated migrant children and for immigration cases where someone is challenging a detention decision.
Where asylum support is granted, that individual will remain in receipt of asylum support until a decision is taken to discontinue the support. This could be where the person is no longer destitute, their asylum claim has been determined or where they no longer meet the conditions of support. There is no time limit or renewal period.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of any increase in the number of immigration staff that are being investigated and suspended as a result of violence and racism towards the detainees.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
We expect all staff working in the immigration detention estate to behave in a professional and respectful manner. Where custodial staff are found not to have met the standards of behaviour and professionalism required they may face disciplinary action from their employer and may have their certification to work as a detainee custody officer reviewed by the Home Office.
We operate a comprehensive complaints process for detained individuals including complaints submitted on their behalf by third parties. As set out in published guidance, DSO - 03-2015 Handling complaints (publishing.service.gov.uk), complaints involving any allegation of misconduct are referred to the Home Office Professional Standard Unit and all allegations of a criminal nature must be reported to the police as soon as the allegation is made.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of detainees' access to medical services in the Heathrow Immigration Removal Centre.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
In relation to the provision of healthcare in immigration removal centres (IRC), we take our responsibilities towards detained individuals’ health and welfare seriously. All IRCs have dedicated health facilities run by doctors and nurses commissioned by NHS England and delivered to the equivalent quality standards as services are in the community.
Every detained individual arriving at an IRC receives an initial healthcare screening within 2 hours of their arrival which identifies any immediate or long-term healthcare risks. Unless they decline, detained individuals in IRCs are given an appointment with a doctor within 24 hours. Clinical pathways into other healthcare services are initiated at this point depending on the outcomes of the reception screen, for example into mental health services. Detained individuals have full access to the 24-hour on-site healthcare team during their stay in the IRC. Continuation of healthcare provision is included in contingency planning to ensure access to healthcare in unexpected incidents or circumstances.
All incidents of self-harm are treated very seriously, and every step is taken to prevent incidents of this nature. The Home Office requires IRC service providers to record management information on the number of incidents of self-harm that have required medical treatment. Information on incidents of self-harm which do not require medical treatment, or specifically, where the intent of the self-harm attempt is suicide, is not readily available from central statistical records.
The Home Office publishes data on the number of deaths of people detained under immigration powers. Data for each year from 2017, are published in Migration Statistics Det_05 of the Detention summary tables. In the period 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2021 (the latest two-year period for which published information is available), there were no deaths of individuals detained in the Heathrow IRCs. The next annual data set regarding deaths of people detained under immigration powers, covering 2022, will be published later this year.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many incidents of (a) self-harm, (b) suicide and (c) attempted suicide have been been recorded at Heathrow Immigration Removal Centre in each of the last two years.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
In relation to the provision of healthcare in immigration removal centres (IRC), we take our responsibilities towards detained individuals’ health and welfare seriously. All IRCs have dedicated health facilities run by doctors and nurses commissioned by NHS England and delivered to the equivalent quality standards as services are in the community.
Every detained individual arriving at an IRC receives an initial healthcare screening within 2 hours of their arrival which identifies any immediate or long-term healthcare risks. Unless they decline, detained individuals in IRCs are given an appointment with a doctor within 24 hours. Clinical pathways into other healthcare services are initiated at this point depending on the outcomes of the reception screen, for example into mental health services. Detained individuals have full access to the 24-hour on-site healthcare team during their stay in the IRC. Continuation of healthcare provision is included in contingency planning to ensure access to healthcare in unexpected incidents or circumstances.
All incidents of self-harm are treated very seriously, and every step is taken to prevent incidents of this nature. The Home Office requires IRC service providers to record management information on the number of incidents of self-harm that have required medical treatment. Information on incidents of self-harm which do not require medical treatment, or specifically, where the intent of the self-harm attempt is suicide, is not readily available from central statistical records.
The Home Office publishes data on the number of deaths of people detained under immigration powers. Data for each year from 2017, are published in Migration Statistics Det_05 of the Detention summary tables. In the period 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2021 (the latest two-year period for which published information is available), there were no deaths of individuals detained in the Heathrow IRCs. The next annual data set regarding deaths of people detained under immigration powers, covering 2022, will be published later this year.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether any children under the age of 18 are currently detained in Heathrow Immigration Removal Centre; and whether any children under the age of 18 have been detained in that centre in the last (a) week, (b) month and (c) year.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Prior to arrival at an immigration removal centre (IRC) all detained persons will have been assessed as over the age of 18 and deemed suitable for detention. In some cases, individuals who are detained subsequently claim to be children. Our contracted service providers follow published guidance - Detention Services Order 02/2019 - on managing those who claim to be under the age of 18 after entering detention, to safeguard and promote their welfare.
The Home Office publishes statistics on people entering, in and leaving immigration detention in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. The number of people entering and in detention each quarter are in tables Det_D01 and Det_D02 of the ‘Detention detailed datasets’, where the data can be broken down by age and first place of detention or current place of detention. The number of people leaving detention each quarter are in table Det_D03 of the same datasets, where the data can be broken down by age. The latest data relates to the end of March 2023.
The Home Office takes the welfare and safety of people in its care very seriously and is focused on providing decent, safe and secure accommodation in all immigration removal centres. Independent scrutiny is a vital part of assurance that detention facilities are safe, secure, and humane. Robust statutory oversight is provided by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons and the Independent Monitoring Boards, ensuring that detained individuals are treated with proper standards of care and decency.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made a recent assessment of the adequacy of living conditions inside the Heathrow Immigration Removal Centre.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Prior to arrival at an immigration removal centre (IRC) all detained persons will have been assessed as over the age of 18 and deemed suitable for detention. In some cases, individuals who are detained subsequently claim to be children. Our contracted service providers follow published guidance - Detention Services Order 02/2019 - on managing those who claim to be under the age of 18 after entering detention, to safeguard and promote their welfare.
The Home Office publishes statistics on people entering, in and leaving immigration detention in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. The number of people entering and in detention each quarter are in tables Det_D01 and Det_D02 of the ‘Detention detailed datasets’, where the data can be broken down by age and first place of detention or current place of detention. The number of people leaving detention each quarter are in table Det_D03 of the same datasets, where the data can be broken down by age. The latest data relates to the end of March 2023.
The Home Office takes the welfare and safety of people in its care very seriously and is focused on providing decent, safe and secure accommodation in all immigration removal centres. Independent scrutiny is a vital part of assurance that detention facilities are safe, secure, and humane. Robust statutory oversight is provided by HM Chief Inspector of Prisons and the Independent Monitoring Boards, ensuring that detained individuals are treated with proper standards of care and decency.