Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the total cost of redundancies that will be incurred as a result of the decision to abolish Police and Crime Commissioners.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
No civil servants will lose their jobs as a result of the decision. The Home Office will work with Offices of Police and Crime Commissioners and local authorities on local transition arrangements, including any impact on local staffing, ahead of implementation in 2028. Following the approach taken for previous transfers of police governance in mayoral areas, costs of transition are expected to be met locally through existing budgets.
It will be for local areas to determine the staffing they need under these new arrangements and no decisions have yet been taken on this. We expect new arrangements to be lower cost as a result of rationalising support arrangements and joining up local service delivery, which can fund more neighbourhood police on the beat across the country.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many civil servants they expect will be made redundant as a result of their decision to abolish Police and Crime Commissioners.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
No civil servants will lose their jobs as a result of the decision. The Home Office will work with Offices of Police and Crime Commissioners and local authorities on local transition arrangements, including any impact on local staffing, ahead of implementation in 2028. Following the approach taken for previous transfers of police governance in mayoral areas, costs of transition are expected to be met locally through existing budgets.
It will be for local areas to determine the staffing they need under these new arrangements and no decisions have yet been taken on this. We expect new arrangements to be lower cost as a result of rationalising support arrangements and joining up local service delivery, which can fund more neighbourhood police on the beat across the country.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how long they anticipate it will take for every police force in England and Wales to replace existing taser devices with the new Taser 10 models
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Taser provides specially trained officers with an important tactical option to protect the public and save lives.
The deployment of Taser, including Taser 10, remains an operational decision for Chief Officers in line with their Strategic Threats and Risk Assessments.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they are considering other sites to temporarily house asylum seekers; and if so, whether they will list any sites actively being considered.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government are working to move asylum seekers into more suitable accommodation such as military bases, to ease pressure on communities across the country.
It has been the longstanding policy of the Home Office under successive governments not to disclose information about specific hotels/sites which may or may not be used for asylum accommodation.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Queen's Own Highlanders Regimental Association will be required to relocate from Cameron Barracks in Inverness as a result of plans to temporarily house asylum seekers there; and if so, where they will be relocated to, and will they be compensated for any costs incurred.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Discussions are underway to use the Cameron Barracks site for asylum accommodation. Consideration of this site is ongoing and any final decision to utilise any site for the intended purposes will be made once the relevant factors have been properly considered.
The government remains committed to engaging with local authorities and stakeholders, and to transitioning away from hotel use as soon as practicable.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to processing asylum claims on site at (1) Cameron barracks, and (2) Crowborough army training camp, when those sites are operational.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Discussions are underway regarding the use of Cameron Barracks and Crowborough for asylum accommodation. It is our longstanding policy not to comment on individual asylum accommodation sites, or on operational arrangements around those sites.
The Home Office already has digital interviewing capability that enables more claimants to be interviewed remotely. We will explore all options to provide better capacity.
The Home Office is working closely with local authorities, police, and community partners to ensure both sites operate safely and respectfully, and all alternative accommodation sites will provide basic, functional, and humane accommodation while asylum claims are processed.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Lord Hanson of Flint on 30 October (HL Deb col 1501), whether both local authorities were fully consulted prior to making a final decision on the selection of sites to house asylum seekers.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Consideration of both sites is ongoing and any final decision to utilise any site for the intended purposes will be made once the relevant factors have been properly considered. The Home Office continues to engage regularly with representatives from the local authority, the NHS, the Police, and local partners, including via Multi Agency Forums pre-delivery and post-Go Live of the proposed site to address the concerns of those most impacted and to identify ways to keep them informed. We will ensure that any development is safe, appropriate and compliant with planning regulations.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Lord Hanson of Flint on 30 October (HL Deb cols 1501-2), whether they will provide further detail of the way in which asylum seekers will be phased into housing in Ministry of Defence barracks.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Alternative Home Office sites are populated with a phased and incremental approach to full occupancy.
Consideration of both sites is ongoing and any final decision to utilise any site for the intended purposes will be made once the relevant factors have been properly considered.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the application of the devolution settlement with Scotland in relation to the Scottish Government's proposed fund to support international social care workers who are without sponsored employment elsewhere in the UK to relocate to work in Scotland.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The proposal to support international social workers who are without sponsored employment elsewhere in the UK to relocate to Scotland appears to be compatible with the existing immigration system and we encourage efforts to support displaced care workers find new employment.
The Home office and UK Visa and Immigration have been working with the Scottish Government to provide practical support for international social care workers who are without sponsored employment.
Health and social care policy is devolved and therefore the provision of social care, funding and workforce planning in Scotland is the responsibility of the Scottish Government.
Asked by: Lord Cameron of Lochiel (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Home Office was consulted by the Scottish Government before the announcement of its proposed fund to support international social care workers who are without sponsored employment elsewhere in the UK to relocate to work in Scotland.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The proposal to support international social workers who are without sponsored employment elsewhere in the UK to relocate to Scotland appears to be compatible with the existing immigration system and we encourage efforts to support displaced care workers find new employment.
The Home office and UK Visa and Immigration have been working with the Scottish Government to provide practical support for international social care workers who are without sponsored employment.
Health and social care policy is devolved and therefore the provision of social care, funding and workforce planning in Scotland is the responsibility of the Scottish Government.