Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the joint statement of 3 October between the governments of Mauritius and the UK announcing that political agreement had been reached on the sovereignty of the Chagos Archipelago, what steps they are taking to ensure that all the Chagossian groups (1) in the UK, and (2) elsewhere, are consulted ahead of signing of the treaty.

Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Ministers and officials will continue to regularly engage with members of the Chagossian community in the UK, Mauritius and Seychelles on a range of issues, including on the implementation of the agreement between the United Kingdom and Mauritius. We recognise the importance of the islands to Chagossians and have worked to ensure this state-to-state agreement reflects their interests.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether the forthcoming treaty between the UK and Mauritius on the Chagos Archipelago will include (1) a guaranteed right-of-return to the outer islands for all Chagossians worldwide, and (2) adequate compensation and reparations; and whether any compensation scheme would be established in consultation with Chagossians, and be overseen by an independent body.

Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Under the terms of the agreement between the UK and Mauritius, Mauritius will be free to implement a programme of resettlement on the islands, other than Diego Garcia. The terms of resettlement will be for Mauritius to determine. We will also work with Mauritius to start a new programme of visits for Chagossians to the Chagos Archipelago, including Diego Garcia. The UK provided compensation to the Chagossian community in the 1980s that courts have ruled was paid in full and final settlement. As part of the agreement between the UK and Mauritius, we will finance a new trust fund for Mauritius to support Chagossians. We will also increase our support to Chagossians living in the UK and around the world, through new and existing projects.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Human Rights Watch report That’s When the Nightmare Started: UK and US Forced Displacement of the Chagossians and Ongoing Colonial Crimes, published in February 2023, what assessment they have made of the lawfulness and implications of preventing Chagossians from returning to the island of Diego Garcia.

Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Under the terms of the agreement, Mauritius will be free to implement a programme of resettlement on the islands other than Diego Garcia. The terms of resettlement will be for Mauritius to determine. We will also work with Mauritius to restart visits to the islands, including Diego Garcia, for Chagossians.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask His Majesty's Government what are the terms of reference of the planned review of Universal Credit mentioned in the Labour Party Manifesto 2024; when they intend to publish its findings; and what mechanisms are planned to ensure that the voices of those with experience of claiming universal credit are heard.

Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

We are committed to reviewing Universal Credit to make sure it is doing the job we want it to do. We have begun this work with the announcement of the Fair Repayment Rate in the Budget and we will continue to work with stakeholders closely as the review progresses. We will regularly update Parliament on progress.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support local authorities to provide sufficient school places and support services for migrant children entering the education system.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)

All children of compulsory school age in England, including migrant children, must receive a suitable full-time education. Any parent, including parents of migrant children, can, at any time, apply for a place for their child at any school through the relevant admission authority. Where a parent is struggling to secure a school place in-year, they can contact their local authority for support.

Paragraph 3.14 of the Schools Admissions Code requires every local authority to have a Fair Access Protocol in place. This ensures that vulnerable children, including refugees and asylum seekers, and those who are having difficulty securing a school place in-year, are allocated a school place as quickly as possible, minimising the time the child is out of school.

Guidance on school applications for foreign national children is available to schools, local authorities and parents. This guidance can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/schools-admissions-applications-from-overseas-children.

As set out in the Kings Speech, in the Children’s Wellbeing Bill, the department is planning to legislate on requiring all schools to cooperate with the local authority on school admissions and place planning matters, and to ensure admissions decisions account for the needs of communities.

Local authorities also have legal duties to ensure sufficient school places. The department provides capital funding through the Basic Need grant to support local authorities in providing additional school places. We carefully target funding at areas with need, based upon data supplied by local authorities themselves, reflecting their local knowledge of all the drivers of pupil numbers in their areas, such as birth rates, housing developments and inward andoutward migration both from within the UK and overseas.

Nearly £1.5 billion of Basic Need capital allocations have been confirmed to support local authorities to create school places needed over the current and following two academic years, up to and including the academic year starting in September 2026. Local authorities’ allocations are in the attachment and published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/basic-need-allocations.

The department’s Pupil Place Planning Advisor team also engages with councils on a regular basis to review their plans for creating additional places and to consider alternatives where necessary. When local authorities are experiencing difficulties, we support them to find solutions as quickly as possible. Where local authorities are failing in their duty, the government will intervene.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to standardise and simplify the in-year school admissions process, to ensure that newly arrived migrant and refugee children can access education promptly.

Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Education)

All children of compulsory school age in England, including migrant children, must receive a suitable full-time education. Any parent, including parents of migrant children, can, at any time, apply for a place for their child at any school through the relevant admission authority. Where a parent is struggling to secure a school place in-year, they can contact their local authority for support.

Paragraph 3.14 of the Schools Admissions Code requires every local authority to have a Fair Access Protocol in place. This ensures that vulnerable children, including refugees and asylum seekers, and those who are having difficulty securing a school place in-year, are allocated a school place as quickly as possible, minimising the time the child is out of school.

Guidance on school applications for foreign national children is available to schools, local authorities and parents. This guidance can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/schools-admissions-applications-from-overseas-children.

As set out in the Kings Speech, in the Children’s Wellbeing Bill, the department is planning to legislate on requiring all schools to cooperate with the local authority on school admissions and place planning matters, and to ensure admissions decisions account for the needs of communities.

Local authorities also have legal duties to ensure sufficient school places. The department provides capital funding through the Basic Need grant to support local authorities in providing additional school places. We carefully target funding at areas with need, based upon data supplied by local authorities themselves, reflecting their local knowledge of all the drivers of pupil numbers in their areas, such as birth rates, housing developments and inward andoutward migration both from within the UK and overseas.

Nearly £1.5 billion of Basic Need capital allocations have been confirmed to support local authorities to create school places needed over the current and following two academic years, up to and including the academic year starting in September 2026. Local authorities’ allocations are in the attachment and published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/basic-need-allocations.

The department’s Pupil Place Planning Advisor team also engages with councils on a regular basis to review their plans for creating additional places and to consider alternatives where necessary. When local authorities are experiencing difficulties, we support them to find solutions as quickly as possible. Where local authorities are failing in their duty, the government will intervene.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to expand the eligibility criteria for family reunion for individuals in Sudan with family ties to the UK.

Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)

We do not have any such plans. Existing rules for family reunion and details on how to apply:

If you were separated from your partner or child when you were forced to leave your country, they can apply to join you in the UK.

Your family members can apply if you have been given asylum or 5 years’ humanitarian protection, and not have British citizenship.

Found: Asylum Support (Prescribed Period) Bill [HL] is a private member’s bill introduced by Baroness Lister of Burtersett