Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of education, safeguarding and therapeutic services for children and young people harmed by exposure to pornography or online sexual harm.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government is doing everything in its power to prevent the horrors of child sexual abuse, including online sexual harm. We are committed to delivering effective education, safeguarding and support to children and young people through a new and refreshed RSHE curriculum in schools which now focusses more on healthy relationships and preventing young people from experiencing harm, including online. We also continue to work with the Centre of Expertise on Child Sexual Abuse and other organisations to support frontline professionals with the skills they need to better identify and respond to all forms of child sexual abuse. For example, the Home Office has partnered with Crimestoppers to create and deliver a targeted resource for school professionals to help them manage harmful sexual behaviours among young children, including online behaviours. We have also provided funding to the Lucy Faithfull Foundation to support Shore, an online space for under 18s who are concerned about their own or someone else’s sexual thoughts and behaviours.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential for official speech-related guidance to create a chilling effect on free expression of religious or philosophical belief.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Freedom of religion and belief is a fundamental human right. People are expected to express their views concerning religion and beliefs respectfully, acting within the confines of the law when providing criticism. This government is committed to protecting the right of individuals to freely practise their religion and we will not tolerate religious hatred in any form.
Our approach to tackling religious hatred does not and would never inhibit free speech or override fundamental rights such as the right to freedom of religion and belief. The courts recognise the right to manifest religious belief as one of fundamental importance, but it is limited by the State’s legal obligation to protect the rights and freedoms of others – this includes respect for their freedom to have religions or beliefs different to our own. Any definition of religious hatred that the Government has adopted or may choose to adopt would be non-statutory.
Operational guidance relating to speech and expression is the responsibility of the police and the Crown Prosecution Service, who develop such guidance in line with legislation that is determined by Parliament.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to safeguard freedom of religion and belief in developing new or updated hate crime or anti-discrimination definitions.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Freedom of religion and belief is a fundamental human right. People are expected to express their views concerning religion and beliefs respectfully, acting within the confines of the law when providing criticism. This government is committed to protecting the right of individuals to freely practise their religion and we will not tolerate religious hatred in any form.
Our approach to tackling religious hatred does not and would never inhibit free speech or override fundamental rights such as the right to freedom of religion and belief. The courts recognise the right to manifest religious belief as one of fundamental importance, but it is limited by the State’s legal obligation to protect the rights and freedoms of others – this includes respect for their freedom to have religions or beliefs different to our own. Any definition of religious hatred that the Government has adopted or may choose to adopt would be non-statutory.
Operational guidance relating to speech and expression is the responsibility of the police and the Crown Prosecution Service, who develop such guidance in line with legislation that is determined by Parliament.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to issue guidance to faith communities regarding mandatory reporting duties to be imposed by the Crime and Policing Bill.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government will set out clear guidance on the operation of the mandatory reporting duty. We will continue to engage with groups that may be impacted, including in faith settings, to ensure the requirements of the new duty are clearly communicated ahead of implementation.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether there is a limit on how many times the Life in the UK test may be re-taken.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
There is currently no limit on how many times the Life in the UK test may be re-taken. The latest pass rate for the Life in the UK test is published in Visas and Citizenship data: Q3 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). The pass rate for applicants from Hong Kong is not available in a publishable format.
The Life in the UK test is important for anyone applying to settle permanently in the UK to ensure they have an understanding of the democratic principles underlying British society and aspects of our culture and traditions. We intend to set out our plans to review the Life in the UK handbook as part of wider nationality reforms in the first half of next year.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the pass rate for the Life in the UK test for (1) all applicants, and (2) applicants from Hong Kong.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
There is currently no limit on how many times the Life in the UK test may be re-taken.
The pass rate for the Life in the UK test for financial quarter 2022-23 is 68.5%. All pass rates for the Life in the UK test are published in Visas and Citizenship data: Q3 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). The pass rate for applicants from Hong Kong is not available in a publishable format.
The Life in the UK test is important for anyone applying to settle permanently in the UK to ensure they have an understanding of the democratic principles underlying British society and aspects of our culture and traditions. We intend to set out our plans to review the Life in the UK handbook as part of wider nationality reforms in the first half of next year.
Asked by: Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the Life in the UK test.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
There is currently no limit on how many times the Life in the UK test may be re-taken. . The pass rate for applicants from Hong Kong is not available in a publishable format.
The Life in the UK test is important for anyone applying to settle permanently in the UK to ensure they have an understanding of the democratic principles underlying British society and aspects of our culture and traditions. We intend to set out our plans to review the Life in the UK handbook as part of wider nationality reforms in the first half of next year.