Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to reconsider banning pillion riders on mopeds, scooters and motorbikes, to prevent their use for violent theft.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Crime Survey for England and Wales data shows a 74% fall in robbery when comparing the year ending September 2023 with year ending March 2010. This is clearly good news.
We recognise the impact robbery can have on individuals and communities and we are committed to tackling and preventing this crime. We are not considering a ban on pillion riders on mopeds, scooters and motorbikes.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to (1) cap, or (2) curtail, multiple appeals from the same asylum seeker.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
There are no plans to change the rules regulating multiple appeals. An asylum seeker who has already appealed cannot appeal again unless they make further submissions which amount to a fresh claim. There will only be a fresh claim if the further submissions have not previously been considered and, taken together with the previously considered material, created a realistic prospect of success at appeal, even though the asylum claim is being refused. Where this test is not met, the further submissions are rejected and cannot be appealed.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Murray of Blidworth on 9 November (HL2942 and HL2943), what assessment they have made of reports that TLScontact in St Petersburg is no longer offering applicants the option of purchasing the 'Keep My Passport' service pending decisions on family visa applications.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
Added Value Services, including the Keep My Passport service, are currently unavailable in Russia. Where applicants are required to keep their passport in their possession to evidence their right to reside in Russia whilst their Family Migration application is under consideration, they can inform the Visa Application Centre staff who will work with UKVI to consider this. Applicants can choose to withdraw their application should they wish to do so, but will not receive a refund.
Family members of British Nationals in Russia, who need to make an urgent visa application, can contact TLS via the link on their website for support.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking (1) to address expedited UK Family Visa applications, and (2) to provide early right to remain for those applicants.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
Requests to expedite UK Family applications are considered on a case-by-case basis and take a range of factors into consideration.
An applicant applying in the UK to extend a family visa (spouse or partner on a 5-year route to settlement) should get a decision within 8 weeks.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to stop TLScontact retaining applicants' passports for up to eight months whilst UK Family Visa applications are being processed.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
TLS Contact and VFS Global operate the network of overseas Visa Application Centres (VACs) on behalf of UKVI. Whilst the collection of biometric data is outsourced to commercial partners, they have no involvement in visa decision-making, which are made by British Government officials, and are unable to influence a visa decision outcome in any way.
Customers attending a VAC overseas will have their passport retained by the commercial partner whilst a decision is made on their application by the Home Office. Once a decision has been made, the commercial partner will contact the customer to invite them to attend the VAC to collect their passport and decision. Customers have the option of purchasing the ‘Keep my Passport’ service, which allows them to retain their passport whilst a decision on their application is being made.
TLS only oversee biometric appointments and document decision and do not have any involvement in visa decision making. (1) Family members of British Nationals in Russia, who need to make an urgent visa application, can contact TLS via the link on their website for support. There is sufficient appointment availability in (2) other countries to allow customers to attend an appointment elsewhere.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the delays by TLScontact processing UK Family Visas in (1) Russia, and (2) other countries; and what steps they intend to take to address those delays.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
TLS Contact and VFS Global operate the network of overseas Visa Application Centres (VACs) on behalf of UKVI. Whilst the collection of biometric data is outsourced to commercial partners, they have no involvement in visa decision-making, which are made by British Government officials, and are unable to influence a visa decision outcome in any way.
Customers attending a VAC overseas will have their passport retained by the commercial partner whilst a decision is made on their application by the Home Office. Once a decision has been made, the commercial partner will contact the customer to invite them to attend the VAC to collect their passport and decision. Customers have the option of purchasing the ‘Keep my Passport’ service, which allows them to retain their passport whilst a decision on their application is being made.
TLS only oversee biometric appointments and document decision and do not have any involvement in visa decision making. (1) Family members of British Nationals in Russia, who need to make an urgent visa application, can contact TLS via the link on their website for support. There is sufficient appointment availability in (2) other countries to allow customers to attend an appointment elsewhere.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the speed with which the foreign spouses and children of British citizens can complete their UK Family Visa applications in the event of them needing to leave a country without delay.
Answered by Lord Murray of Blidworth
Priority services for UK Family Visa applications made outside of the UK are temporarily suspended. We are keeping this under review and will reintroduce the priority service as a consequence of steps taken to facilitate visas arising from Ukraine conflict when possible.
In exceptional circumstances, requests to expedite UK Family Visa applications are considered on a case-by-case basis and take a range of factors into consideration.
The Super Priority Visa (SPV) service is available to applicants applying for a UK Family Visa from within the UK. Applicants who choose to use the SPV service should get a decision by the end of the next working day after attending their biometrics appointment.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of Ukrainians who have left Ukraine since the start of Russia's invasion of that country; and how many have settled in the UK to date.
Answered by Lord Harrington of Watford
Information on the number of arrivals can be found in our published Homes for Ukraine data: Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme: Visa data by country, upper and lower tier local authority - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) and under the Homes For Ukraine and Ukrainian Family Scheme data lists: Ukraine Family Scheme and Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme (Homes for Ukraine) visa data - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Summary table: data as received from the Home Office as at 7 June 2022
| Location | Sponsor | Number of visa applications | Number of visas issued | Number of arrivals in the UK by sponsor location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
England | Sponsored by individuals | 69,065 | 62,662 | 40,085 |
Northern Ireland | Sponsored by individuals | 1,159 | 993 | 231 |
Scotland | Sponsored by individuals | 3,691 | 3,348 | 2,035 |
| Sponsored by the Scottish Government | 9,170 | 8,183 | 2,236 |
| Total | 12,861 | 11,531 | 4,271 |
Wales | Sponsored by individuals | 2,839 | 2,538 | 1,609 |
| Sponsored by the Welsh Government | 3,116 | 2,693 | 590 |
| Total | 5,955 | 5,231 | 2,199 |
Notes to the summary table
1. These data are provisional management information from live operational systems and are subject to change. The data have not gone through the same levels of quality assurance as official statistics.
Total Ukraine Scheme visa applications received: 154,500
Data is as of 7 June 2022 and comprised of:
Total Ukraine Scheme visas issued to people: 124,400
Data is as of 7 June 2022 and comprised of:
Total arrivals of Ukraine Scheme visa-holders in the UK: 70,500
Data is as of 6 June 2022 and comprised of:
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to allow Ukrainians living in the UK, regardless of their immigration status, the right to bring dependants or spouses into the UK.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
As set out in the Home Secretary’s statement to the House on 1 March, a fee free, bespoke Ukraine Family Scheme has been introduced.
The route allows both the immediate family members (spouse, civil partner, durable partner, minor children) and extended family members (parent, grandparent, adult children, grandchildren, siblings, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, in laws and their immediate family) to join their relatives in the UK. The UK-based sponsoring relative must be a British citizen, a person who is present and settled in the UK (including those with settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme), a person in the UK with refugee leave or with humanitarian protection or an EEA or Swiss national in the UK with limited leave under Appendix EU (pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme). This route was launched on 4 March.
Ukrainian nationals in the UK with temporary permission stay are not permitted to sponsor a relative under the Ukraine Family Scheme. However, on 18 March the Government launched the Homes for Ukraine Scheme, which enables individuals, charities, community groups and businesses to volunteer accommodation and provide a route to safety for Ukrainians, and their immediate family members, forced to escape their homeland. Ukrainian nationals’ resident in the UK with at least six months’ leave can qualify to sponsor under this scheme if they are able to offer suitable accommodation and pass security checks. Further information about the Homes for Ukraine Scheme has been published here:
https://homesforukraine.campaign.gov.uk/
Ukrainian nationals in the UK who do not hold a valid immigration status will continue to be prohibited from sponsoring a spouse or dependant to enter the UK.
Asked by: Lord Truscott (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to waive visas requirements for Ukrainians fleeing war.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Russia’s assault on Ukraine is an unprovoked, premeditated attack against a sovereign, democratic state. We stand with Ukraine.
We have already made changes to the immigration system, to support British Nationals, and those settled in the UK, and their families in Ukraine
Visas are an important security tool. There is a risk that hostile actors or other individuals with links to serious and organised crime or corruption could exploit the arrangement to travel to the UK undetected if security checks are not in place. Similarly, our visa process allows safeguarding checks to be undertaken to protect vulnerable people who will be travelling to the UK.
Due to Russia’s invasion, there are no direct travel routes from Ukraine to the UK. The safest route for people to leave Ukraine is via neighbouring countries to the West. From the safety of these countries, those escaping the war can benefit from the support we have already announced to reunite with UK-based family, or should they otherwise wish to travel to the UK.
The UK Government has an extensive visa application centre (VAC) network in neighbouring countries. Ukrainians safely in these countries can access these services and apply for visas, including the new family scheme. Capacity in those VACs has been extended and a fully online process for those with a valid Ukrainian passport has been implemented.