Asked by: Lord German (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what quotas they place on the numbers of persons to be resettled on the recommendation of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
The UK does not set a quota on the overall number of persons to be resettled on the recommendation of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Asked by: Lord German (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what criteria they apply when considering applications for resettlement from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is uniquely placed to help identify and refer the most vulnerable individuals for resettlement in accordance with their standard resettlement submission categories. These are based on people’s needs and vulnerabilities
We do not seek to intervene in or influence UNHCR’s selection processes.
The seven resettlement submission categories used by UNHCR are set out here:
https://www.unhcr.org/46f7c0ee2.pdf
Asked by: Lord German (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many persons identified by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as needing resettlement in the UK have been so resettled in each of the last 10 years.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
Between 2013 and 2022, 30,055 people have been resettled to the UK through UNHCR resettlement routes. The UK ranks 3rd highest of European countries over this period.
Between 2013 and 2022, people were offered safe and legal routes into the UK via the following:
- 153,708 BN(O) Hong Kong Visas
- 233,770 visas granted under Ukraine Visa and Extension Schemes
- 53,230 family reunion visas
- 51,420 resettled or relocated. 30,055 resettled through UNHCR resettlement routes and 21,365 through non-UNHCR routes (i.e. Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme Pathway 1 and Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy).
Asked by: Lord German (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Sharpe of Epsom on 25 January (HL4660), what are the names of the 10 police forces who do not conduct a post Online Assessment Process face-to-face interview.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
In the response to the question tabled on 12 January, it was stated that there were 10 forces that did not hold a post Online Assessment Process interview as part of the police recruitment process. Further information provided by the National Police Chiefs’ Council and College of Policing shows that this figure is nine – one force had incorrectly stated it did not complete an interview.
According to information provided by the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the College of Policing these nine forces are Avon & Somerset, City of London, Dorset, Hampshire, Humberside, Norfolk, Suffolk, West Midlands and Wiltshire. These forces engage with all candidates face-to-face as part of the recruitment process. Six forces (Avon & Somerset, City of London, Dorset, Humberside, Norfolk and Suffolk) routinely require applicants to attend a face-to-face meeting through familiarisation events or similar; the remaining three have face-to-face engagement at other stages in the recruitment process, such as during the medical and fitness assessments.
Following engagement with the Home Office, the College of Policing will write to Chief Constables in early February with updated guidance on post assessment interviews that will strengthen the requirement for forces to use the College of Policing’s standard post Online Assessment Process interview process, as part of the police recruitment process.
Asked by: Lord German (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of the funding Oak National Academy will require (1) in the period from September 2022 until September 2025, and (2) thereafter on an annual basis.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The Government has set aside up to £43 million over the period from 2022/23 to 2024/25 to support Oak National Academy. Funding beyond April 2025 for departments and their Arm’s Length Bodies will be determined at the next Spending Review, which is expected to conclude in late 2024.
Asked by: Lord German (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will pause the procurement process for Oak National Academy pending the outcome of the ongoing application for judicial review by the British Educational Suppliers Association, the Publishers Association, and the Society of Authors.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As part of the process to set up Oak National Academy as an Arm’s Length Body, the department produced a business case which included an assessment of potential market impact. This was published in November 2022.
The business case draws upon evidence provided by the market. The department estimates the value of the commercial curriculum resources market to be between £200 to £300 million per annum. We do not have a separate estimate for the educational supplies market.
Monitoring market impact is a priority for the department and will be factored into the ongoing evaluation of Oak National Academy, including its review in 2024 as part the wider Public Bodies Review programme. The review will act as a checkpoint to ensure that Oak is acting effectively and will include consideration of the effect on the commercial curriculum resources market.
It is important that teachers and pupils are able to benefit from the high-quality materials that Oak will provide as soon as possible. Oak will therefore be continuing with its activities while the application for judicial review is being considered, including the procurement of curriculum packages according to the planned schedule.
Asked by: Lord German (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of the potential impact on the commercial market for curriculum resources of establishing Oak National Academy as an arm’s-length body.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As part of the process to set up Oak National Academy as an Arm’s Length Body, the department produced a business case which included an assessment of potential market impact. This was published in November 2022.
The business case draws upon evidence provided by the market. The department estimates the value of the commercial curriculum resources market to be between £200 to £300 million per annum. We do not have a separate estimate for the educational supplies market.
Monitoring market impact is a priority for the department and will be factored into the ongoing evaluation of Oak National Academy, including its review in 2024 as part the wider Public Bodies Review programme. The review will act as a checkpoint to ensure that Oak is acting effectively and will include consideration of the effect on the commercial curriculum resources market.
It is important that teachers and pupils are able to benefit from the high-quality materials that Oak will provide as soon as possible. Oak will therefore be continuing with its activities while the application for judicial review is being considered, including the procurement of curriculum packages according to the planned schedule.
Asked by: Lord German (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of the value of the (1) curriculum resources market, and (2) educational supplies market, to the UK economy.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As part of the process to set up Oak National Academy as an Arm’s Length Body, the department produced a business case which included an assessment of potential market impact. This was published in November 2022.
The business case draws upon evidence provided by the market. The department estimates the value of the commercial curriculum resources market to be between £200 to £300 million per annum. We do not have a separate estimate for the educational supplies market.
Monitoring market impact is a priority for the department and will be factored into the ongoing evaluation of Oak National Academy, including its review in 2024 as part the wider Public Bodies Review programme. The review will act as a checkpoint to ensure that Oak is acting effectively and will include consideration of the effect on the commercial curriculum resources market.
It is important that teachers and pupils are able to benefit from the high-quality materials that Oak will provide as soon as possible. Oak will therefore be continuing with its activities while the application for judicial review is being considered, including the procurement of curriculum packages according to the planned schedule.
Asked by: Lord German (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Lord Sharpe of Epsom on 9 January (HL Deb col 1218), how many police forces (1) do, and (2) do not, routinely require applicants to attend a post assessment face-to-face interview before proceeding to appointment as a police officer.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Decisions about police recruitment, including how recruitment and selection processes are run, are a matter for Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners and are therefore managed locally by forces. This is done within a national application, assessment and selection framework, in line with national guidance maintained by the College of Policing.
All 43 forces across England and Wales use the College of Policing Online Assessment Process (OAP) which was launched in May 2020. This improved process includes an interview, which is assessed by a fully trained assessor and ensures quality assurance is in place. This is vastly different to level of quality assurance which existed before the Police Uplift Programme, when forces undertook face-to-face interviews with no national standards for assessors.
Post OAP interviews were introduced as a non-mandatory step by the College of Policing in 2022. These interviews were introduced to standardise various local processes that forces were using following applicants passing the OAP.
The latest available data provided by the National Police Chiefs’ Council and College of Policing indicates that 23 forces use this standard College process. In addition, 10 forces continue to use a local face-to face interview post OAP. A further 10 do not hold a post OAP interview, however these forces engage with all candidates face-to-face as part of the recruitment process, for example through familiarisation events or during other stages in the recruitment process.
Asked by: Lord German (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Goldie on 13 April (HL7497), when they will announce their decision on a rebate to (1) service personnel, and (2) their families, living in serviced accommodation.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The Ministry of Defence (MOD) has been working to explore options for the calculation and implementation of a potential rebate to Service personnel and families in Service Accommodation. The MOD aims to make an announcement in the near future.