Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what rules exist to prevent foreign nationals who are convicted felons from entering the UK.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Part 9 of the Immigration Rules provides for the refusal of entry clearance or permission to enter or stay in the UK for foreign nationals with previous criminal convictions. Each case is considered on its individual merits. Mandatory grounds for refusal apply where a person has a previous criminal conviction which resulted in a custodial sentence of 12 months or more; is a persistent offender; has committed an offence which caused serious harm; or whose presence in the UK is not conducive to the public good. Refusal is also mandatory for visitors and those coming to the UK for less than 6 months if they have received a custodial sentence of less than 12 months or a non-custodial sentence, unless a period of at least 12 months has passed.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to reopen or replicate (1) the Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme, and (2) Ukraine Family Scheme visas.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Homes for Ukraine scheme remains open, uncapped and free of charge for Ukrainians in need of temporary sanctuary to apply to come to the UK for 18 months.
These applications must be sponsored by someone who is British, Irish or settled in the UK. Homes for Ukraine provides guests with the right to live, work and access benefits and services while in the UK.
The Ukraine Family scheme closed on 19 February 2024, in favour of a single visa application route (Homes for Ukraine) for Ukrainians to come to the UK and another (the Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme) for those seeking to extend their leave already in the UK. This simplifies the schemes and provides greater clarity for applicants whilst ensuring consistency in accommodation and safeguarding checks.
The Government continues to keep the Ukraine schemes under consistent review in line with developments in the ongoing war.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made regarding the finances of renting the Bibby Stockholm for the detention of asylum seekers.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
As part of the government’s commitment to fix the asylum system and clear the backlog, the decision has been taken to not renew the contract for the Bibby Stockholm, which ends in January 2025. Extending the use of the Bibby Stockholm would have cost over £20 million next year.
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Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to continue to use the "Bibby Stockholm"; and, if so, for what purpose and at what budgeted cost.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Bibby Stockholm will continue to be in use until the contract expires in January 2025.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what has been the total cost of preparing the Rwanda deportation plan.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
In her statement to the House on 22 July, the Home Secretary said the Rwanda-UK partnership had cost £700 million, which encompasses the direct costs of the partnership as detailed in the National Audit Office report released March 1, 2024, as well as expenses related to preparing for relocation flights to Rwanda and implementing the Illegal Migration Act (IMA).
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many immigrants have been prepared for deportation to Rwanda; and what will happen to them when the Rwanda deportation plan is repealed.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government is committed to a new policy agenda, which is why we are moving away from the Migration and Economic Development Partnership (MEDP) with Rwanda.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what contractual obligations the UK entered into before the general election, and with whom, to meet the requirements of the deportations to Rwanda.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Contractual obligations are subject to commercial sensitivities and cannot be disclosed.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they plan to use civil servants currently engaged in the Rwanda deportation process.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government is committed to a new policy agenda, which is why we are moving away from the Migration and Economic Development Partnership (MEDP) with Rwanda and refocusing our efforts on a new returns and asylum system and Border Security Command.
Funding and efforts will be focused on expanding our enforcement and returns capability, so those with no right to be here are swiftly removed.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they intend to take to repeal legislation providing for immigrants to be deported to Rwanda.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The government has set out intentions with regards to the MEDP. Any future legislation will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they provide WiFi access within asylum seekers' lodgings to enable them to communicate with family members.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The provision of Wi-Fi is not a contractual requirement across the asylum accommodation estate.