Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many LGBTIQ people applied for refugee status in the UK on the basis of homophobic, biphobic or transphobic laws in their home countries in the last five years, and what was the percentage success rate of those applications.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Further to the response provided to Lord Scriven on 25 March 2015, (HL5725) the process of quality assuring the data held on the Home Office's Case Information Database, relating to sexuality based asylum claims is currently being undertaken by Home Office officials.
As such, the Home Office has not yet reached a point where it can provide an accurate picture of the number of asylum claims based on sexuality and no statistical data on this subject has hitherto been published.
Information where the detail of the asylum claim basis relates to gender identity issues is not routinely recorded on Home Office databases in a way that can be easily aggregated. No published data exists relating to gender identity based asylum claims.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what criteria they use in auditing compliance with Tier 4 licences for non-EU students.
Answered by Lord Bates
All Tier 4 licensed sponsors are assessed against criteria set out in the published Tier 4 Guidance for Sponsors. This includes the following four documents:
Some of the key criteria includes:
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Tier 4 licences for non-EU students are audited annually.
Answered by Lord Bates
The number of Tier 4 licensed sponsors audited from 1 January to 30 September 2015 was 286. In the calendar year 2014 there were 383 .
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government where information about higher education institutions found not to be in compliance with Tier 4 licences for non-EU students is published.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Tier 4 Register of Sponsors which is available via the link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/register-of-licensed-sponsors-students shows active sponsors.
No information is routinely published regarding sponsors found not to be compliant.
In January 2015 data was published showing Tier 4 sponsors whose status appeared as revoked from 2010 to 2014. This information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/tier-4-sponsors-whose-status-appeared-as-revoked-from-2010-to-2014
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what protocols should be followed when a pupil is interviewed by the police on school premises.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (PACE) Codes of Practice set out the procedures that the police must follow in the exercise of their powers. The interviewing of suspects and witnesses is covered in paragraphs 11 and 12 of PACE Code C. In relation to interviewing pupils on school premises, I would refer you to paragraph 11.16 and Note for Guidance 11D:
11.16 Juveniles may only be interviewed at their place of education in exceptional circumstances and only when the principal or their nominee agrees. Every effort should be made to notify the parent(s) or other person responsible for the juvenile’s welfare and the appropriate adult, if this is a different person, that the police want to interview the juvenile and reasonable time should be allowed to enable the appropriate adult to be present at the interview.
If awaiting the appropriate adult would cause unreasonable delay, and unless the juvenile is suspected of an offence against the educational establishment, the principal or their nominee can act as the appropriate adult for the purposes of the interview. Note: Paragraph 1.5A extends the requirement in this paragraph to 17-year-old suspects. 11D Juveniles should not be arrested at their place of education unless this is unavoidable. When a juvenile is arrested at their place of education, the principal or their nominee must be informed. Paragraph 1.5A extends this Note to 17-year-old suspects.
In addition, Note for Guidance 2A in PACE Code G specifically relates to the investigation of the use of force by school staff. PACE Codes of Practice must be followed by all police officers in England and Wales. At a local level, police forces may provide their officers with additional guidance to that contained within the PACE codes. This guidance could relate to the protocols to be followed when interviewing pupils on school premises. Such guidance is not held centrally.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the fact that the average United Kingdom graduate starting salary ranges from £18,000 to £24,000, what assessment they have made of the impact of policy that allows international students to stay in the United Kingdom upon the condition that they find a graduate-level job paying £24,000 a year.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Government recognises that there should be opportunities for the brightest and best international students to undertake skilled work in the UK after their studies. International students who graduate in the UK may switch into skilled work providing they have an offer of graduate-level job from a sponsoring employer, paying at least £20,500 per year or the appropriate salary for the particular occupation, whichever is higher.
The Government closed the previous Tier 1 (Post-Study Work) route in April 2012. This route granted free access to the UK labour market for two years after graduation in the UK. Too many individuals in the route were unemployed or competing with resident workers for low-skilled jobs, and too many were using the student route merely as a means to work in the UK, without any real intention of study. We also saw a large number of fraudulent applications. This undermined our work routes and damaged the reputation of our education system.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the concept of a visa on arrival for students from outside the European Union with a confirmed place at a United Kingdom higher education institution.
Answered by Lord Bates
The purpose of the visa system is to screen applicants before they make their journey to the UK. It is an effective tool for the UK in reducing illegal immigration, tackling organised crime and protecting national security. The current system of screening applicants before they arrive also speeds up processing at the port of arrival.
When applying for a visa, students are required to show that they have been accepted to study at an education provider in the UK. They must also demonstrate they have a sufficient level of English, funds to maintain themselves, relevant qualifications and a genuine intention to study.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what information and personal data are provided to the Albanian authorities on unaccompanied asylum-seeking children from Albania making asylum claims in the United Kingdom; and whether such children are informed or asked to consent to the transfer of such information and personal data before they are transferred.
Answered by Lord Taylor of Holbeach
The Government has a legal duty to endeavour to trace the families of unaccompanied asylum seeking children and to take into account their best interests. In response to safeguarding concerns arising from reports that Albanian adults were falsely claiming to be children, and in order to facilitate the family tracing process, the Home Office piloted a process in late 2013 whereby information relevant to family tracing and confirming identity was obtained from the Albanian authorities in respect of 215 individuals. In all of these cases, the asylum claims had been refused and the Albanian authorities had not been the alleged actor of persecution. The piloted process became business as usual with effect from 29 January 2014. Checks are only conducted under this process if such a step will not jeopardise the safety of the child and their family. The Albanian authorities are provided with the names, dates of birth, identity numbers, places of birth, addresses and contact numbers for the child and their parents. Published Home Office guidance stipulates that the child should be informed shortly after point of claim for asylum that the Home Office will take appropriate steps to endeavour to trace their families.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in respect of how many Albanian asylum seekers claiming to be children, information was sought from the Albanian authorities leading to the identification of 23 individuals who were suspected of providing incorrect information about their age and the establishment of Operation Coldspell in December 2013.
Answered by Lord Taylor of Holbeach
The Government has a legal duty to endeavour to trace the families of unaccompanied asylum seeking children and to take into account their best interests. In response to safeguarding concerns arising from reports that Albanian adults were falsely claiming to be children, and in order to facilitate the family tracing process, the Home Office piloted a process in late 2013 whereby information relevant to family tracing and confirming identity was obtained from the Albanian authorities in respect of 215 individuals. In all of these cases, the asylum claims had been refused and the Albanian authorities had not been the alleged actor of persecution. The piloted process became business as usual with effect from 29 January 2014. Checks are only conducted under this process if such a step will not jeopardise the safety of the child and their family. The Albanian authorities are provided with the names, dates of birth, identity numbers, places of birth, addresses and contact numbers for the child and their parents. Published Home Office guidance stipulates that the child should be informed shortly after point of claim for asylum that the Home Office will take appropriate steps to endeavour to trace their families.