Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Scottish Guardianship Service for unaccompanied asylum-seeking minors, following the publication of the report An evaluation of the Scottish Guardianship Service in November 2021.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office takes our duty of care towards children and young people extremely seriously and we prioritise asylum applications from children and young people. We do not run the Scottish Guardianship Service and the evaluation is therefore for the Scottish government, but we welcome the support offered to unaccompanied asylum seeking children by the service.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the start of the move-on period for newly recognised refugees will be triggered by the issue of an eVisa which replaces the biometric residence permit; and how an individual will be able to access their eVisa if they are unable to open a UKVI account.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Currently, a newly recognised refugee gets 28 days to move on from asylum accommodation following the issue of their Biometric Residence Permit (BRP). The introduction of eVisas means that changes will need to be made to the move on process. We will provide further information on the initiation of the move on period before we stop issuing BRPs.
When the Home Office stops issuing Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs) to newly recognised refugees without a previous BRP or valid passport, we will create a UKVI account and eVisa for them within 14 days of a positive decision on their Asylum claim being served. This action will be referenced in their decision letter.
We will inform the person that their UKVI account has been created and provide the necessary information for them to sign in. This communication will also include details on how to get support for accessing or reporting any issues with their eVisa.
Currently, people sign in to their UKVI account using a Document Number and Date of Birth. For those without a document, we will issue a new reference number, known as a UKVI Customer Number, which can be used alongside their Date of Birth to sign in and view their eVisa.
We acknowledge the existing challenges in delivering correspondence and BRP cards to newly recognised refugees. We are exploring the best ways to provide this information, including making increased efforts to capture contact details during the asylum process.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Hanson of Flint on 2 September (HL141), what assessment they have made of the joint report by the APPGs on Poverty and on Migration, The Effects of the UK Immigration, Asylum and Refugee Policy on Poverty, published on 30 April.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
We are determined to restore order to the asylum system so that it operates swiftly, firmly, and fairly. Clearing the asylum backlog is our priority.
It is a financial necessity to start clearing the asylum backlog so that those costs do not continue to mount up at the expense of the taxpayer. The Home Secretary changed the law to remove the retrospective application of the Illegal Migration Act. This allows decision-makers to decide asylum claims from individuals who have arrived in the UK from 7 March 2023. Asylum interviews have commenced, and asylum claims are now being decided for individuals who arrived in the UK from 7 March 2023.
The Home Office continues to invest in a programme of transformation and business improvement initiatives to speed up and simplify decision making, reduce the time people spend in the asylum system and decrease the number of people who are awaiting an interview or decision.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they will take to ensure that the right to British citizenship under the British Nationality Act 1981 is not confused or conflated with the powers and discretion delegated to the Home Secretary to manage the immigration system including naturalisation of adult migrants.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
In line with the duties introduced by the Equality Act 2010, the Home Office undertakes an equality impact assessment whenever decisions are taken on policy relating to registering statutory rights to British citizenship. Most recently, equality impact assessments were undertaken when changes were made to Section 3(1) British Nationality Act 1981 and on the introduction of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022.
There are various provisions within the British Nationality Act 1981 that allow for children born in the UK to register as British citizens. The Home Office has published clear and easy to follow guidance for applications under each of these sections. Home Office caseworkers are trained to carry out their duties to ensure that those who apply and meet the statutory requirements are granted citizenship.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that statutory rights to be registered as a British citizen under the British Nationality Act 1981 are exercised so that all children who are born, and have grown up, in the UK are recognised as citizens.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
In line with the duties introduced by the Equality Act 2010, the Home Office undertakes an equality impact assessment whenever decisions are taken on policy relating to registering statutory rights to British citizenship. Most recently, equality impact assessments were undertaken when changes were made to Section 3(1) British Nationality Act 1981 and on the introduction of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022.
There are various provisions within the British Nationality Act 1981 that allow for children born in the UK to register as British citizens. The Home Office has published clear and easy to follow guidance for applications under each of these sections. Home Office caseworkers are trained to carry out their duties to ensure that those who apply and meet the statutory requirements are granted citizenship.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what, if any, race equality impact assessment has been made of policy and practice relating to registering statutory rights to British citizenship.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
In line with the duties introduced by the Equality Act 2010, the Home Office undertakes an equality impact assessment whenever decisions are taken on policy relating to registering statutory rights to British citizenship. Most recently, equality impact assessments were undertaken when changes were made to Section 3(1) British Nationality Act 1981 and on the introduction of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022.
There are various provisions within the British Nationality Act 1981 that allow for children born in the UK to register as British citizens. The Home Office has published clear and easy to follow guidance for applications under each of these sections. Home Office caseworkers are trained to carry out their duties to ensure that those who apply and meet the statutory requirements are granted citizenship.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that children with rights to British citizenship can secure their citizenship rights where hostile British or settled fathers are unwilling to support their child's registration or passport applications.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office regularly engages with local authorities to support them in ensuring that children in local authority care, who are not already British citizens, can make an appropriate application for registration for citizenship. Children in local authority care are not required to pay an application fee when applying for registration as a British citizen.
In most cases, local authorities have access to the information needed to establish the citizenship rights and apply for registration for children in their care. Where there are evidence gaps, the Home Office will assist any applicant by checking information held in its records to confirm a claim.
Following the implementation of the British Nationality Act 1981, a range of explanatory material was prepared to support those affected by changes made by the Act. This material has been maintained and now forms part of the content of the relevant GOV.UK pages. The Home Office maintains published customer guidance for every British citizenship and nationality route, and also provides a British nationality status confirmation service.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to fulfil the commitments made to Parliament at the time of the creation of British citizenship under the British Nationality Act 1981 that information would be made available to affected individuals.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office regularly engages with local authorities to support them in ensuring that children in local authority care, who are not already British citizens, can make an appropriate application for registration for citizenship. Children in local authority care are not required to pay an application fee when applying for registration as a British citizen.
In most cases, local authorities have access to the information needed to establish the citizenship rights and apply for registration for children in their care. Where there are evidence gaps, the Home Office will assist any applicant by checking information held in its records to confirm a claim.
Following the implementation of the British Nationality Act 1981, a range of explanatory material was prepared to support those affected by changes made by the Act. This material has been maintained and now forms part of the content of the relevant GOV.UK pages. The Home Office maintains published customer guidance for every British citizenship and nationality route, and also provides a British nationality status confirmation service.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to encourage and support local authorities to ensure that children in their care with rights to British citizenship have their citizenship rights confirmed or registered, including where necessary by confirming relevant information from records held by the Home Office.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office regularly engages with local authorities to support them in ensuring that children in local authority care, who are not already British citizens, can make an appropriate application for registration for citizenship. Children in local authority care are not required to pay an application fee when applying for registration as a British citizen.
In most cases, local authorities have access to the information needed to establish the citizenship rights and apply for registration for children in their care. Where there are evidence gaps, the Home Office will assist any applicant by checking information held in its records to confirm a claim.
Following the implementation of the British Nationality Act 1981, a range of explanatory material was prepared to support those affected by changes made by the Act. This material has been maintained and now forms part of the content of the relevant GOV.UK pages. The Home Office maintains published customer guidance for every British citizenship and nationality route, and also provides a British nationality status confirmation service.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of proposals for a temporary Palestinians visa scheme.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The government is keeping all existing pathways under review in response to events in Gaza.