Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications have been denied under the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme as of 17 January 2024, by region.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The Protective Security for Mosque Scheme is a new scheme in 2023/24 and opened on 21 June 2023.
As of 17 January 2024, the Home Office has received 269 applications to the scheme. By region, applications have been received from the East Midlands (32), East of England (24), Greater London (57), North East (21), North West (54), South East (22), South West (8), West Midlands (36), Northern Ireland (3) and Wales (12).
Decisions on applications will be communicated to applicant mosques and Muslim faith community centres in due course. The scheme remains open to applicants and information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/places-of-worship-security-funding-scheme
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications he has received under the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme as of 17 January 2024, by region.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The Protective Security for Mosque Scheme is a new scheme in 2023/24 and opened on 21 June 2023.
As of 17 January 2024, the Home Office has received 269 applications to the scheme. By region, applications have been received from the East Midlands (32), East of England (24), Greater London (57), North East (21), North West (54), South East (22), South West (8), West Midlands (36), Northern Ireland (3) and Wales (12).
Decisions on applications will be communicated to applicant mosques and Muslim faith community centres in due course. The scheme remains open to applicants and information can be found at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/places-of-worship-security-funding-scheme
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, which (a) individuals and (b) organisations his Department is consulting on religious hatred.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
Anti-Muslim hatred is abhorrent and has no place in our society. No one should ever be a victim of hatred because of their religion or belief and the Government continues to work with police and community partners to monitor and combat it. We have funded Tell MAMA, a service that supports victims of anti-Muslim hatred, with over £6 million since their inception in 2012.
In light of the rise in anti-Muslim hate incidents being reported, the Government has increased Tell MAMA’s funding to £1 million this year. This funding will provide additional resource to the service they are providing to support victims of anti-Muslim hatred.
The department has given careful consideration to the use of language and definitions. The definition of Islamophobia as proposed by the APPG is not in line with the Equality Act 2010, which defines race in terms of colour, nationality and national or ethnic origins. The term anti-Muslim hatred is a more precise term which better reflects UK hate crime legislation.
The department is seeking the views and perspectives of domestic and international leaders and experts in this field to explore how religious hatred is experienced by British communities.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what progress his Department is making on tackling Islamophobia.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
Anti-Muslim hatred is abhorrent and has no place in our society. No one should ever be a victim of hatred because of their religion or belief and the Government continues to work with police and community partners to monitor and combat it. We have funded Tell MAMA, a service that supports victims of anti-Muslim hatred, with over £6 million since their inception in 2012.
In light of the rise in anti-Muslim hate incidents being reported, the Government has increased Tell MAMA’s funding to £1 million this year. This funding will provide additional resource to the service they are providing to support victims of anti-Muslim hatred.
The department has given careful consideration to the use of language and definitions. The definition of Islamophobia as proposed by the APPG is not in line with the Equality Act 2010, which defines race in terms of colour, nationality and national or ethnic origins. The term anti-Muslim hatred is a more precise term which better reflects UK hate crime legislation.
The department is seeking the views and perspectives of domestic and international leaders and experts in this field to explore how religious hatred is experienced by British communities.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what definition of anti-Muslim hatred his Department uses.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
Anti-Muslim hatred is abhorrent and has no place in our society. No one should ever be a victim of hatred because of their religion or belief and the Government continues to work with police and community partners to monitor and combat it. We have funded Tell MAMA, a service that supports victims of anti-Muslim hatred, with over £6 million since their inception in 2012.
In light of the rise in anti-Muslim hate incidents being reported, the Government has increased Tell MAMA’s funding to £1 million this year. This funding will provide additional resource to the service they are providing to support victims of anti-Muslim hatred.
The department has given careful consideration to the use of language and definitions. The definition of Islamophobia as proposed by the APPG is not in line with the Equality Act 2010, which defines race in terms of colour, nationality and national or ethnic origins. The term anti-Muslim hatred is a more precise term which better reflects UK hate crime legislation.
The department is seeking the views and perspectives of domestic and international leaders and experts in this field to explore how religious hatred is experienced by British communities.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he plans to develop a definition of anti-Muslim hatred.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
Anti-Muslim hatred is abhorrent and has no place in our society. No one should ever be a victim of hatred because of their religion or belief and the Government continues to work with police and community partners to monitor and combat it. We have funded Tell MAMA, a service that supports victims of anti-Muslim hatred, with over £6 million since their inception in 2012.
In light of the rise in anti-Muslim hate incidents being reported, the Government has increased Tell MAMA’s funding to £1 million this year. This funding will provide additional resource to the service they are providing to support victims of anti-Muslim hatred.
The department has given careful consideration to the use of language and definitions. The definition of Islamophobia as proposed by the APPG is not in line with the Equality Act 2010, which defines race in terms of colour, nationality and national or ethnic origins. The term anti-Muslim hatred is a more precise term which better reflects UK hate crime legislation.
The department is seeking the views and perspectives of domestic and international leaders and experts in this field to explore how religious hatred is experienced by British communities.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when his Department plans to make a decision on the non-charging proposal for the Greater Manchester clean air zone.
Answered by Robbie Moore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
We requested further evidence from the Greater Manchester authorities to enable us to consider their plans and they have recently provided further information. We will respond to Greater Manchester in due course.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of how many families have received funding from the Household Support Fund in (a) Manchester, Gorton constituency and (b) Greater Manchester since October 2021.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There have been four Household Support Fund (HSF) schemes to date, with the current iteration running until the end of March 2024. Management Information (MI) was published for HSF1-3 following the completion of each scheme and can be found here.
Household Support Fund management information: 6 October 2021 to 31 March 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The latest MI covering HSF3 was published in August 2023. We will similarly look to publish MI for the entirety of HSF4 following scheme completion and subject to quality assurance processes. An evaluation of the current HSF4 scheme is underway. This will seek to understand the delivery and impacts of scheme funding.
The number of awards is reported by Authorities, and so data at a constituency level is not available. A total of 1.8m HSF awards were provided to residents in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester (Manchester, Stockport, Tameside, Oldham, Rochdale, Bury, Bolton, Wigan, Salford and Trafford) during HSF1-3,including 420,000 in Manchester City Council. The number of awards, as reported by Authorities, may not represent the number of people helped as some may have received multiple awards.
No assessment has been made of the impact of the Household Support Fund on child poverty. The HSF is an intentionally flexible scheme designed to enable Local Authorities to respond to local need. Local Authorities are encouraged through our scheme guidance to consider the needs of households including families with children of all ages.
A total of £80.7m has been spent in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester during HSF1-3 of which an average 69% has been spent on families with children. This includes 19.4m spent in the Manchester Local Authority of which 52% has been spent on families with children. Overall, Greater Manchester has been allocated £134.6m over all 4 rounds of the Household Support Fund including £32.3m for the Manchester Local Authority. Information regarding HSF4 funding allocations can be found here.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Household Support Fund on levels of child poverty in Manchester, Gorton constituency since October 2021.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There have been four Household Support Fund (HSF) schemes to date, with the current iteration running until the end of March 2024. Management Information (MI) was published for HSF1-3 following the completion of each scheme and can be found here.
Household Support Fund management information: 6 October 2021 to 31 March 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The latest MI covering HSF3 was published in August 2023. We will similarly look to publish MI for the entirety of HSF4 following scheme completion and subject to quality assurance processes. An evaluation of the current HSF4 scheme is underway. This will seek to understand the delivery and impacts of scheme funding.
The number of awards is reported by Authorities, and so data at a constituency level is not available. A total of 1.8m HSF awards were provided to residents in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester (Manchester, Stockport, Tameside, Oldham, Rochdale, Bury, Bolton, Wigan, Salford and Trafford) during HSF1-3,including 420,000 in Manchester City Council. The number of awards, as reported by Authorities, may not represent the number of people helped as some may have received multiple awards.
No assessment has been made of the impact of the Household Support Fund on child poverty. The HSF is an intentionally flexible scheme designed to enable Local Authorities to respond to local need. Local Authorities are encouraged through our scheme guidance to consider the needs of households including families with children of all ages.
A total of £80.7m has been spent in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester during HSF1-3 of which an average 69% has been spent on families with children. This includes 19.4m spent in the Manchester Local Authority of which 52% has been spent on families with children. Overall, Greater Manchester has been allocated £134.6m over all 4 rounds of the Household Support Fund including £32.3m for the Manchester Local Authority. Information regarding HSF4 funding allocations can be found here.
Asked by: Afzal Khan (Labour - Manchester, Gorton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many awards have been made through the Household Support Fund in (a) Manchester, Gorton constituency and (b) Greater Manchester since October 2021.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There have been four Household Support Fund (HSF) schemes to date, with the current iteration running until the end of March 2024. Management Information (MI) was published for HSF1-3 following the completion of each scheme and can be found here.
Household Support Fund management information: 6 October 2021 to 31 March 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The latest MI covering HSF3 was published in August 2023. We will similarly look to publish MI for the entirety of HSF4 following scheme completion and subject to quality assurance processes. An evaluation of the current HSF4 scheme is underway. This will seek to understand the delivery and impacts of scheme funding.
The number of awards is reported by Authorities, and so data at a constituency level is not available. A total of 1.8m HSF awards were provided to residents in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester (Manchester, Stockport, Tameside, Oldham, Rochdale, Bury, Bolton, Wigan, Salford and Trafford) during HSF1-3,including 420,000 in Manchester City Council. The number of awards, as reported by Authorities, may not represent the number of people helped as some may have received multiple awards.
No assessment has been made of the impact of the Household Support Fund on child poverty. The HSF is an intentionally flexible scheme designed to enable Local Authorities to respond to local need. Local Authorities are encouraged through our scheme guidance to consider the needs of households including families with children of all ages.
A total of £80.7m has been spent in the Local Authorities that make up Greater Manchester during HSF1-3 of which an average 69% has been spent on families with children. This includes 19.4m spent in the Manchester Local Authority of which 52% has been spent on families with children. Overall, Greater Manchester has been allocated £134.6m over all 4 rounds of the Household Support Fund including £32.3m for the Manchester Local Authority. Information regarding HSF4 funding allocations can be found here.