Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many Home Office employees are employed in Wales in (1) police services, (2) prison services, (3) border control, and (4) other services.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Of the areas listed, the Home Office only provides border control services. Of the 957 Home Office staff based in Wales. Unfortunately, the number of Border Force members of staff cannot be released for national security reasons.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many applications for refugee status visas they have received from citizens of Ukraine; how many of these have been granted; and how many applicants have arrived in the UK so far.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Statistical information regarding the number of Ukrainian nationals applying for UK visas is regularly released by UKVI. Information on the number of visas granted under the Ukraine Family Scheme and Homes for Ukraine Scheme which were launched in response to Russia’s invasion of can be found in our published data on the GOV.UK webpage, or below.
Total Ukraine Scheme visa applications received: 128,100Data is as of 17 May 2022 and comprised of:
Data is as of 17 May 2022 and comprised of:
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have received from the (1) Welsh Government, and (2) Scottish Government, regarding the wishes of those administrations to welcome refugees into their countries.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
This question can be best answered by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), and should therefore be directed to that Department.
The UK Government is working closely with the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to promote and deliver the Ukraine Family Scheme and the Homes for Ukraine Scheme. We have received a number of representations from them as part of this engagement.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the (1) Welsh Government, and (2) Scottish Government, regarding the wishes of those administrations to welcome refugees into their countries.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The UK Government is working closely with the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to promote and deliver the Ukraine Family Scheme and the Homes for Ukraine Scheme.
Ministers and officials have been in direct contact with both the Scottish and Welsh Governments on this issue.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what restrictions they are imposing, if any, on refugees from Ukraine who have been offered residence in the UK regarding their right to take up employment.
Answered by Lord Harrington of Watford
There are no employment restrictions on individuals from Ukraine who have been offered residence in the UK.
Both the Ukraine Family Scheme and the Homes for Ukraine Scheme allow Ukrainian nationals to remain in the UK for up to three years, during which time they can work in any role within the UK Labour market.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many refugees from Ukraine have applied to enter the UK since Russia's invasion of that country.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Information on the number of applications currently being processed under the newly launched Ukraine Family Scheme (UFS) can be found in our published data on the GOV.UK webpage: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ukraine-family-scheme-application-data
Statistical information regarding number of Ukrainian nationals applying for UK visas prior to the launch of the UFS is regularly released by UKVI. The latest published statistics can be found here: Immigration statistics, year ending December 2021 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Providing the complete information requested would exceed the word limit for responses to written parliamentary questions. However, the information requested is available through the links provided.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many refugees from Ukraine have been admitted into the UK since 1 February; and how many of these made it known that they had family in the UK when they made their application for refugee status.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Information on the number of applications currently being processed under the newly launched Ukraine Family Scheme (UFS) can be found in our published data on the GOV.UK webpage: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ukraine-family-scheme-application-data
Statistical information regarding number of Ukrainian nationals applying for UK visas prior to the launch of the UFS is regularly released by UKVI. The latest published statistics can be found here: Immigration statistics, year ending December 2021 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Providing the complete information requested would exceed the word limit for responses to written parliamentary questions. However, the information requested is available through the links provided.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of France regarding refugees from Ukraine who wish to enter the UK but have been prevented from moving from Calais to the UK by immigration officials.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The UK Government maintains regular contact with the Government of France at ministerial and official level. The Home Secretary is in regular contact with the French Interior Minister Darmanin she spoke to him recently to discuss the situation in Ukraine and the support the UK is offering to those fleeing the conflict. We have established a temporary Visa Application Centre in northern France, to support vulnerable people who arrive in Calais without a visa. These people will be referred by Border Force to this new site for support.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what guidance the Home Office has given to immigration control officials at airports, regarding the need to identify any persons entering the United Kingdom from overseas, as to whether they are infected by coronavirus.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Schedule 21 of the Coronavirus Act 2020 confers a power on immigration officers to direct or remove a person who they reasonably suspect may be infectious with coronavirus to a suitable place for screening and assessment by a public health officer. These powers may be exercised following prior consultation with a public health officer, where practicable, and with regard to the relevant guidance.
We are currently working with the relevant public health authorities to develop guidance for the use of these powers.
Asked by: Lord Wigley (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of the adequacy of financial resources available to police forces in England and Wales to enable those forces to fulfil their responsibilities.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Government recognises that demands on police are changing and becoming more complex. Police funding increased by over £1bn this year, in-cluding council tax, the biggest increase since 2010, enabling the police to recruit more police officers and staff, tackle serious and organised crime and continue to protect the public from terrorism.