Commons Chamber

Monday 1st September 2025

(began 2 hours, 7 minutes ago)

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None Portrait Q7. What steps she is taking to help tackle fraud in the welfare system. (905397)
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Thank you Mr Speaker. Number seven.
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Andrew Western Portrait Andrew Western MP, The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Stretford and Urmston, Labour)
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Thank you Mr Speaker. This government has committed to significant measures to counter welfare fraud error, debt. This is the biggest package of such measures in recent history. The OBR has estimated it will deliver an additional £1.6 billion of savings in the next five years. The package is underpinned by public authorities error recovery bill which contains a range of new powers which allows us to keep pace with offenders who exploit the system. I thank the exploit the system.

I thank the Minister for his answer. We all agree that fraud strikes at the heart of the system. I do hope that the government will undertake a zero tolerance approach to this. Unlike in Scotland we have recently heard that £36 billion of benefit money that £36 billion of benefit money paid out in error will not now be recovered. Does the Minister agree to is deeply unfair to taxpayers? to is deeply unfair to taxpayers? The honourable gentleman tempts me to encroach upon what are legitimately policy questions for the Scottish government.

I would say that the policy of this government is clear, and is set out in the bill. I am grateful to the Cabinet Secretary for social justice for continuing to work with me constructively to try and make this bill as workable as possible. Alignment where we can. But where, if we end up diverging, we are still able to make sure that we are doing everything that we can from this Parliament and everything the Scottish government chooses to do to bear down on fraud and error.
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None Portrait Q8. What assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Personal Independence Payment application process. (905398)
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Question eight Mr Speaker.
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None Portrait Q16. What steps she is taking to support young people into employment, education or training in Southend East and Rochford constituency. (905406)
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providers, at the moment, and we will be increasing, already increasing, actually the proportion of face-to-face assessments and that will continue.
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None Portrait Q18. What steps she is taking to increase levels of employment through the trailblazer programme to tackle economic activity. (905408)
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wait until the child poverty strategy is published in the autumn. We believe every child the matter where they are born or what their parents do, or their ability, be given an equal start in life.
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None Portrait Topical questions: Work and Pensions
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Topicals.
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Yvette Cooper Portrait Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP, The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley, Labour)
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Thank you, Mr Speaker. With permission, I will update the House on actions we are taking with France, to strengthen our Border Security Command and the next steps on our reforms to the asylum system. The House will be aware that when we came into the government, we found an asylum and immigration system in chaos. Small boat gangs for seven years had been allowed to embed their criminal trade along the French coast, the asylum backlog was soaring and illegal working was being ignored.

They lost control of the system and as a result, open many hundreds of asylum hotels across the country. While returns were one third lower than in 2010. Before leaving office, they deliberately cut asylum decision- making by 70%. Leaving a steeply rising backlog behind. It is little wonder that people right across the country's confidence in the system. And demanded to know why they were paying the price of a system that was so out of control. But that does not mean that people rejected the long and proud history of Britain doing our bit to help those fleeing persecution or conflict.

Including, in the past decade, families from Ukraine, Syria, and Hong Kong. Because it is the British way to do our bit, alongside other countries, to help those who need century, but the system has to be controlled and managed. Based on fair and properly enforce rules, not chaos and exploitation driven by criminal smuggling gangs. And it is precisely That substantial reforms are needed now. In our first year in government, we have taken immediate action, laying the foundations for more fundamental reform.

We have restored asylum decision-making and rapidly increase the rate decisions. We continued with the previous government's freeze on asylum decisions, thousands more people would have been in hotels and asylum accommodation by now. Instead, we removed 35,000 people with no right to be here, including a 28% increase in returns of failed asylum seekers. And a 14% increase in removals of foreign criminals. We have increased raids and arrests on illegal working by 50% and we cut the annual hotel bill by almost £1 billion in the last financial year.

We are rolling out digital ID and biometrics kits, so immigration enforcement can check on the spot whether someone has a right to work or a right to be in the UK. And on channel crossings and organised immigration crime, we are putting in place new powers, new structures, and new international agreements, to help dismantle the criminal industry. Behind the boats. I want to update the House on the further steps we are now taking. In August, signed a new treaty with France elements, for the first time, to directly return those who arrive in small boats.

-- Allowing us for the first time. It took place the next day, on people arriving indelible, and we expect the first returns to begin later this month. Applications have also been open for the reciprocal legal boot, with the first case is under consideration. Subject to strict security checks. We have made clear this is a pilot scheme. But the more we prove the concept at the outset, the better we will be able to develop and grow it. But the principles it embodies are crucial.

Because no one should be making these dangerous or illegal journeys on small boats. And if they do, we want to see them swiftly returned. But in return, we believe in doing our bit alongside other countries, to help those who have fled persecution through managed and controlled legal programs. This summer, we have also taken further action to strengthen enforcement against smuggling gangs. France has reviewed its maritime approach to allow for the intersection of taxi boats in French waters. And we will continue to work with them to implement this change as soon as possible.

In the last year, the National Crime Agency has left 347 descriptions of immigration crime networks. Their highest level on record. And a 40% increase in a record. And a 40% increase in a year. Over the summer, we announced £100 million uplift in Border Security Command up to 300 more personnel In the National Crime Agency, focusing on targeting the smuggling gangs. And at the border security bill will give them stronger powers, counterterrorism powers against smuggling gangs, power to seize and more phones on arrival, and ban sex offenders from the asylum system altogether.

If opposition parties work with us to speed passage through the other place, instead of opposing the bill, those powers could be in place within months. Making our country safer and more secure. Returning now to the major reforms that are needed to fix the broken asylum system that we inherited. Although we have increased decision-making and returns, the overall system remains erratic and outdated, and unfair. As we committed, in the immigration white paper, we will shortly set out more radical reforms to modernise the asylum system and to boost productivity.

Tackling the pull factors, threatening enforcement, making sure people are treated fairly, performing the way the ECHR is interpreted here at home, speeding up the system, cutting numbers, and ending the use of hotels. In developing controlled and hotels. In developing controlled and There will be an overhaul of the appeals system, the biggest obstacle to ending hotel use. Tens of thousands of people in asylum accommodation are currently waiting for appeals, and under the current system the figure is to grow.

With an average wait time already of 54 weeks. So we have already funded thousands of additional sitting days this year, and the border security Bill will introduce a statutory timeframe of 24 weeks but we need to go further. We will introduce a new independent body to deal with immigration and asylum appeals. Fully independent of government, staffed by professionally trained adjudicators with safeguards to ensure high standards, but able to surge capacity is needed to accelerate and prioritise cases, alongside new procedures to tackle repeat applications and unnecessary delays.

We are also increasing the tension and returns capacity including 1000 bed expansion, with the first tranche of additional beds coming online within months, to support many thousands more in forced removals each year. Our reforms will also address the overly complex system for family migration, including changes to the way that article 8 of the ECHR is interpreted. We should be clear, international law is important. It is because other countries know that we abide by it that we have been able to make these new agreements with France to return people who arrived on small boats.

To make new agreements with Germany to stop the warehousing of small boats by criminal gangs, and to explore returns hubs partnerships with other European countries. But we also need the interpretation of international law to keep up the realities and challenges of today's world. There is one area we also need to make more immediate challenges. The current rules for family reunion for refugees were designed many years ago to help families separated by war, conflict, and persecution. The way they are now being used has changed.

Even before the pandemic, refugees were applied to bring family to the UK did so on average more than one or two mac years after they had been granted protection. Long enough for them to be able to get jobs or find housing will be able to provide their family with some support. In Denmark and Switzerland, currently those granted to military protection are not able to apply to bring family for at least two mac years after protection has been granted. Here in the UK now however, those applications come in on average around one month after protection has been granted.

Often even before a newly granted refugee has left asylum accommodation. As a consequence, refugee families who arrive are far more likely to be seeking homelessness assistance. Some councils are finding more than 1/4 of their family homelessness applications are linked to refugee family reunion. That is not sustainable. Currently there are also no conditions of family reunion for refugee sponsors unlike those in place if the sponsor is a British or a long-term UK resident, and that is not fair.

Finally, the proportion of migrants who arrived on small boats and then applied to bring family has also increased sharply in recent years. With signs that smuggling gangs are now able to use the promise of family reunion to promote dangerous journeys to the UK. We continue to believe that families staying together is important. It is why we will seek to prioritise family groups among the applicants to come to Britain under our new deal with France. Reforms are needed. Without asylum policy statement later this year, we will set up new system for family migration couldn't looking at contribution requirements, long periods before newly granted refugees can apply, and dedicated controlled arrangements for unaccompanied children, and for those fleeing persecution who have family in the UK.

We aim to have some of those changes in place for the spring. In the meantime we do need to address the immediate pressures on local authorities and the risks from criminal gangs using family reunion as a pull factor to encourage more people onto dangerous boats. Therefore we are bringing forward new immigration rules this week to temporarily suspend new applications under the existing dedicated refugee family reunion route until the new framework is introduced, and refugees will be covered by the same family migration rules and conditions as everyone else.

Let me turn next to the action we are taking to ensure every asylum hotel will be closed for good under this government. Not just by shifting individuals from hotels to other sites but by driving down the numbers supported accommodation overall. And not in a chaotic way through piecemeal court judgements through a controlled, managed, and through a controlled, managed, and orderly program. Driving down inflow into the asylum system, clearing the appeals backlog which is crucial, and continuing to increase returns. Within the asylum estate we are reconfiguring the sites, greasing room sharing, tightening the test for accommodation and working at pace to identify alternative cheaper and more appropriate accommodation, with other government departments and with local authorities.

We are increasing standards and security, and joint public safety cooperation between the police, accommodation providers, and the Home Office, to ensure that laws and rules are enforced. I understand and agree with local councils and communities who want the asylum hotels in their communities close because we need to close all asylum hotels, and we need to do so for good. But that must be done in a controlled and orderly manner, and not through a return to the previous government's chaos that led to the opening of hotels in the first place.

Finally, let me update the house on the continued legal and controlled support we will provide for those facing conflict and persecution. We will continue to do our bit to support Ukraine, extending the Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme by a further 24 months. With further details to be set out in due course. You're also taking immediate action to rescue children who have been seriously injured in the horrendous onslaught on civilians in Gaza so they can get the health treatment they need. The Foreign Secretary will update the House shortly on the progress to get those children out.

I can confirm that the Home Office has put in place systems to issue expedited visas with biometric checks conducted prior to arrival on children and immediate accompanying family members, and we have done the same for the Chevening scholars and are in the process of doing so for those in Gaza who have been awarded fully funded scholarships and places that UK universities so they can start their studies in the autumn this year. Later this year, we will set out plans to establish a permanent framework for refugee students to come and study in the UK, so we can help more talented young people fleeing war and young people fleeing war and persecution to find a better future alongside And managed ways for refugees to find work in the UK.

The government is determined to fix every aspect of the broken system inherited, to restore the confidence of the British people. Solving problems not exploiting them, a serious and comments to plan not fantasy claims based on some that don't add up gimmicks that failed in the past. What we will never do is seek to stir up chaos, division, or hate, because that is not who we are as a country. And that is not what Britain stands for. A practical plan to strengthen our border security to fix the asylum chaos and to rebuild confidence in an Asylum and Immigration Act system that serves and national interest, tax and national security, and reflects our national values.

When we wave the Union flag, when we wave the St George's flag, meeting God Save The King, and celebrate everything that is great about Britain and our country, we do so with pride because of the values that our flags, our king, and our country represent. Togetherness, fairness, and decency. Respect for each other, respect for the rule of law. That is what our country stands for. That is the British way, to fix the problems we face, and I commend this statement to the House.
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Chris Philp Portrait Rt Hon Chris Philp MP (Croydon South, Conservative)
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Shadow Home Secretary.

**** Possible New Speaker ****

Thank you Mr Speaker. I thank the Home Secretary for advanced sight of her statement. The government has her statement. The government has now been in office for well over a now been in office for well over a year. It is fair to say that even their kindest friends would say they think it has gone very well. think it has gone very well. Listening to her statement, it sounds that she thinks everything is sounds that she thinks everything is fine if there are any problems to sort somehow somebody else's fault.

sort somehow somebody else's fault. Is she living in a parallel universe? After over a year in universe? After over a year in office, she must now take response ability for what is happening under ability for what is happening under this government. It was interesting during her statement, to notice she during her statement, to notice she did not mention her favourite phrase from a year or so ago that she was from a year or so ago that she was going to smash the gangs.

I wonder why she was so silent on her previously favourite catchphrase? The answer is it is not going very The answer is it is not going very well. She mentioned National Crime Agency disruptions. Let me gently Agency disruptions. Let me gently point out that 84% of those National Crime Agency disruptions that she cited a few minutes ago are classified as not being high impact. If you look at National Crime Agency arrests for organised immigration crime, they went down by 16% in the last financial year, hardly smashing the gangs.

In fact the NCA's arrests for organised immigration crime in that financial year, only 26. A drop in the ocean compared to the tens of thousands crossing the channel. It was also rather conspicuous that the Home Secretary did not mention at all, not even a word, about the numbers illegally crossing the English Channel. I wonder why that was? I wonder why she forgot to say a single word about that? The reason I'm afraid it's pretty clear. Far from smashing the gangs, so far this year, 29,000, to be precise 29,003 illegal immigrants have crossed the English Channel.

It is the worst in history and it is up by 38% compared to last year. That is not success, it is failure. Things are not getting any better, they are getting worse. This government is failing and everyone can see it. That is why there are protests up and down the country. And where those protests are peaceful, I support them. It is are peaceful, I support them. It is why 75% of the public think the government is handling immigration and asylum badly.

75%. Let me turn to hotels. In the nine months before the last general election, 200 hotels were closed down, including the Bell Hotel in Epping. But since the election, the numbers in asylum hotels have actually gone up by 8%. Had that previous trend of closures continued, today there would be no asylum hotels open at all. I asked Home Secretary to confirm this, would she confirm that she will not reduce hotel usage simply by shunting asylum seekers from hotels and into flats and HMOs which are desperately needed by young people? Would she give the House that categoric assurance? Last week, the Home Secretary's lawyers said that the rights of illegal immigrants are more important than the rights of local people in places like Epping.

When this was expressly put in those terms to the Education Secretary yesterday, on the Trevor Phillips program in those words, she shamefully agreed. Those statements are a disgrace. The Home Secretary realise how angry that makes people feel? It speaks of a government not on the side of the people in this country. It means the government appears to care more about the rights of illegal immigrants than our own citizens. So will she apologise for what her lawyers and the Education Secretary said? Would she undertake that ministers and their lawyers will never say that The Home Secretary talks about how returns deal with France.

It has been reported it will only return about 50 people a week. Amounting to 6% of arrivals. She accepts that allowing 94% of illegal arrivals to stay will act as no deterrent at all? Does she accept that? And if she doesn't accept this figure, will she tell the House exactly how many immigrants crossing the channel will in fact be returned under her deal? She may recall that back in July, we were told by the government, the first returns would happen within weeks.

That was back in July. Will she confirm to the health the number that have actually been returned so far is precisely 0. She also spent about a couple of minutes ago, there will be security checks on those people reciprocally taken from France into the UK. But will she confirmed her agreement with France expressly says the French element will not provide UK government with any information at all, any personal data about those migrants, so if there are criminal convictions, suspicions about extremism or terrorism, the French government will not provide information to us and if that is true, as her agreement says, how can you possibly conduct security checks.

The Home Secretary talks about tweaks to family Visa rules. Let me be clear about the oppositionPAT RICHIE: Position on this. Someone enters the country legally, they should not be allowed to bring in any family members. In fact, everybody, entering this country illegally entering this country illegally should be immediately removed to their country of origin, if possible. And if not possible, to a safe third country, such as Rwanda. A scheme which she cancelled just days before it was due to start.

The days before it was due to start. The public expects that approach, an approach which she cancelled because the numbers crossing the channel so far this year have been the worst ever. The worst in history. It is not just the numbers are high, not just the numbers are high, hundreds of migrants living in those hotels have been charged with criminal offences, such as sexual assault on young girls, and multiple rapes. This is not just Border Security Command it is, it is a public safety crisis as.

People across the country are curious, that is why they are protesting and what 75% of the public think this government is failing on asylum and immigration. If this government were serious about fixing this problem, they would know little tweaks here and there are not enough. Tweaks to article 8 are not going to be enough. Tweaking the Family Reunion rules are not enough. Returning, maybe if we are lucky, 50 people a week to France is not going to be enough. Maybe intercepting a few boats, worthy though that is, it is not going to be enough.

The only way these crossings., the only way we are going to get control of our borders back, is that everybody crossing the channel knows they will get the turn. We tabled a bill to do that in Parliament a few weeks ago. We had a plan to do that. The Rwanda bill. We need to go further by this applying the Human Rights Act, not just article 8, the entire Human Rights Act for enriching matters. The government is serious, that is what they will do. I have one last question Home Secretary, if you really want to control our borders and really wants to get down the record numbers that have been crossed on her watch, she would back our plan, to supply the Human Rights Act in its entirety, on immigration matters, and ensure that everything applies across the channel was immediately removed.

-- Every single person that has cropped channel was immediately removed. -- Crossed the channel. channel.
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Yvette Cooper Portrait Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP, The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley, Labour)
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In the 14 years his party was in government, in which they never managed to do any of the fantasy things that he claims. Coming back to the reality, rather than the fantasy rhetoric that he said. He talked about the approach that his previous government was taking before the election. It is worth reminding the House what that approach was. Asylum decisions dropped by 70%. They essentially had a freeze on taking asylum decisions and they were returning those asylum seekers nowhere.

Not to France, not to save countries that people had passed through, not to Rwanda, despite running the scheme for more than two years. Only four volunteers than two years. Only four volunteers went. At a cost of £700 million, that approach left us with a backlog that was soaring. Had we continued with that totally failed approach, not taking asylum decisions, not returning people anywhere, there would have been tens of thousands more people in a style and accommodation, in asylum hotels across the country right now.

That is the kind of chaos that his policies were heading towards and that is the kind of payoff that he is promising again now. We have to remember his personal record where small boat arrivals went up tenfold on his watch, when he was on his watch, when he was immigration minister. And where less than 1,000 asylum seekers were in hotels by the time he became immigration minister, more than 20,000, by the time he left. And his new concern for councils, he was the immigration minister that actually wrote to local authorities to tell them he was stopping the requirement for local authorities to agree to accommodation, saying 'I have instead authorised providers to identify any suitable properties they consider appropriate'.

So, Mr Speaker, we agree with communities across the country, that asylum hotels must all close. I understand as well what councils individually want to take action in their area. I would say to the shadow home secretary, the part that was to be in government should have a proper plan for the whole country. Not just promote a chaotic approach that ends up making it worse in lots of areas. But that actually is there record. The reason we have asylum hotels in the first place because they did no planning, they let the chaos cat out of control, and when the shadow justice minister, when he was immigration minister, is one of the shadow home secretary, brushed around the country, opening hotels instead, instead of taking a practical steady approach and get the heart of the problem, that deduces the asylum system, strengthens Border Security Commander tackles the reforms and appeals causing huge delays.

As a final point, this government strongly believes that sex offenders should be banned from the asylum system altogether. That is why we have put those details into the borders security bill. The bill his party has voted against time and again. Still persisting in at the House of Lords. -- Resisting. A bill that if opposition parties supported us and work with us, we could have or on the statute book, and have no strong powers against the sex offenders, the strong powers, counterterrorism powers, to go after criminal gangs, we could have the stronger powers in place to tackle the offences being committed in the channel and across the country as well.

The trouble is, what the party opposite is doing in opposition is actually an even worse version of what they did in government. Wrapping up the rhetoric with policies that will just make the chaos worse. This government will fix the chaos that we inherited, and strengthen our border security for the sake of the whole country.
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Lisa Smart Portrait Lisa Smart MP (Hazel Grove, Liberal Democrat)
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auto family reunion routes. Cutting beats back further seems counter- productive. Especially when half of those who were granted family those who were granted family reunion visas it with a 25 were reunion visas it with a 25 were children under 18 it is worth government has increased the rate of decisions, those with no right to be decisions, those with no right to be here should be sent back quickly and here should be sent back quickly and those with a valid claim should be able to settle, work, integrate into our communities.

The backlog is too large. Initial decisions are taking large. Initial decisions are taking too long. As the Home Secretary stated, the significant share of the backlog comes from appeals. According to the government's own According to the government's own figures, in 2024, almost half of rejected asylum applications were rejected asylum applications were overturned on appeal. And for applications from high ground countries, the proportion was even higher for welcome clarity from the Home Secretary on how long it is currently taking to process the currently taking to process the average asylum application, and what concrete steps are being taken to ensure that only the cases are processed more swiftly, but that processed more swiftly, but that decisions are right the first time.

So applications are not left in limbo, the courts are not limbo, the courts are not overburdened, taxpayers are footing overburdened, taxpayers are footing the bill for avoidable delays. I welcome the Home Secretary's encouraging comments about a reciprocal agreement with France. Could she confirm whether the government plans for this to be scaled up? And if so, when? Given one of the main drivers for dangerous channel crossings is the absence of safe, legal family reunion routes, does the Home Secretary agree that cutting family reunion rules actually risks making a small boat crisis worse, not better.

The Home Secretary rightly also mentions the impact on local authorities. When individuals leave hotels, many present as homeless, greedy and unsustainable burden on councils, including my own. -- Creating an unsustainable burden. Can she say how she was appalled councils to ensure this crisis is not simply shifting from one overstretched system to another. Constituents have been in touch with me with their concerns over the number of weeks about the number of flags going up on lampposts around the area.

They worry they have been put up by those who seek to devalue our committee, not bring it together for patriotism is a good thing, we should be proud of our country, we should be proud that our country welcomed people like my Nan in the 1930s, when she was fleeing the Nazis. We should be proud of the record we have of doing our bit. We should be proud of the British values and action across my communities every day. I am proud of those police officers who kept everyone safe during the protests at two hotels in my constituency over the summer.

Proud of those teachers and pupils who welcome you classmates when they have been placed in hotels. And I am proud of those who volunteer their time to support new arrivals, whether through local churches or other voluntary groups and charities. Because, Mr Speaker, that is what patriotism looks like.
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Yvette Cooper Portrait Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP, The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley, Labour)
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Can I thank the honourable member for her remarks and questions. What I will say to her is obviously, at the heart of the France pilot we have developed is the principle that those who are arriving on dangerous and illegal small boats should be returned, but we should also have alongside that, in return, the legal route for those who apply and go through proper security checks and we will seek to prioritise as part of that people who have a connection to the UK.

For example, prioritising family groups, people who have family connections to the UK. And family will continue to need to be in underpinning part of the approach. It is, for example, you will recall the Ukrainian families scheme was important part of the response to Ukraine. Add something from opposition Labour Party called for as well. What I will say about the family reunion races we have at the moment is the Abbey and using a very different way compared to five years ago. The way in which the number of people who were applying immediately before they have a job, before have a house, before I have NUAR been up to support their families, and instead, as a result, are increasing the pressures on local authorities, at a time when we need local authorities not just to be able to do their bit to be able to help clear hotels, but also crucially to be able to provide homelessness supporting the local community and that is why making sure that the refugee arrangements around families actually doesn't put that additional pressure on the homelessness system, I think is important.

It is why we will set out reforms and ensure that in the interim, the refugees are included under the existing arrangements that apply to everybody. To all sponsors in the UK family reunion as well. One of the appeals issue, we obviously need to speed it up. The average appeal time 54 weeks, that's 40 long. But also, some appeals, for way longer than that and we have people who are in asylum accommodation for years, with repeated appeals. That is preventing the closure of asylum hotels, at least take place, it is why we need the reforms.

Finally, the issues of flags, I strongly support flags across the country, with the flag we fly at the castle each year, the Union Jack one of the Labour Party's membership card, I will show her a copy if she hasn't seen it as well. But those flags are the embodiment, as I said. The flags are an embodiment, should be a way to bring our country together. That'll be the same for Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The other ways of commerce with symbolism, to bring

**** Possible New Speaker ****

A couple of years ago I was working in local government in working in local government in Scotland had to do with the impact of asylum hotels. The shadow Home Secretary at the time was at the Home Office, and he opened hotel Home Office, and he opened hotel after hotel without even telling councils that that was happening.
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Yvette Cooper Portrait Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP, The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley, Labour)
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This is an issue that the gentleman has taken an interest in. What I would say is that, since he and I started discussing this issue many years ago, the way in which the system has been used has changed and so it has gone from people applying after they had been having protection for a year or two years in the UK to applying in around a month, and that means that those people applying have often not left asylum accommodation or asylum hotels.

They don't have housing, jobs, ways in which to support family members who they seek to bring to the UK, and we've also seen issues around risks that criminal gangs are using and exploiting it. That is why we are temporarily pausing the existing refugee family reunion and will be consulting on what are the new arrangements that should be brought in that we would aim to bring in some of those arrangements by the spring. In the interim, the refugees will be covered by exactly the same rules as everyone else and the same conditions as everyone else through the appendix FM process, there is a concern where there are no conditions at the moment on refugee family reunion.

The way in which it has been used has changed and there is a responsibility on us to not have huge problems on homelessness assistance for local authorities to have a managed system that also supports contributions and doesn't simply and are being exploited by criminal gangs.
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