Asked by: Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to support Ukrainian nationals living in the UK whose right to (a) work and (b) rent expires before the Ukraine Permission Extension scheme comes into effect; and if her Department will issue guidance to (i) employers and (ii) landlords on ensuring that refugees with less than a year remaining on their permission are not denied the opportunity to (A) work and (B) rent property in the UK on this basis.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
To provide future certainty, Ukrainians who have been provided with sanctuary in the UK under the Ukraine schemes will be able to apply for further permission to remain in the UK through a bespoke Ukraine Permission Extension (UPE) scheme due to open in early 2025. The new route will provide an additional 18 months’ permission.
The scheme will provide the same rights and entitlements as the existing Ukraine Schemes, to access work, benefits, healthcare and education. Further details on eligibility and application processes will be available before the scheme opens.
We continue to work closely with relevant stakeholders to communicate these changes to landlords and employers, to support the stability of Ukrainian guests in these areas.
The Employer’s guide to right to work checks and the Landlord's guide to right to rent checks have been updated to reflect employment and renting of Ukrainian nationals. Updates have included advising of schemes which are now closed, and changes made to the Homes for Ukraine scheme which means some visa holders, who applied to the scheme after the 19 February 2024, will have 18 months permission to remain in the UK.
Asked by: Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that police forces in England are following guidance on the processing of shotgun licence applications.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
We keep our controls on firearms under constant review to safeguard against abuse by criminals and terrorists and to minimise the risk to public safety.
The Coroner at the Inquest into the fatal shootings at Keyham issued Prevention of Future Deaths Reports on 8 March with recommendations for the Government to consider in relation to firearms licensing legislation. In addition, we are also considering recommendations from the Independent Office for Police Conduct, in relation to their investigation in respect of the Keyham shootings, and recommendations from the Scottish Affairs Select Committee in respect of their inquiry following the fatal shooting on the Isle of Skye.
On 1 November 2021, we published new Statutory Guidance for Chief Officers of Police on firearms licensing. Police forces have a legal duty to have regard to this guidance when carrying out their firearms licensing function. The Statutory Guidance provides guidance to the police on assessing the suitability of applicants to possess firearms, including applications made for shotgun certificates, and is helping to improve the quality of police firearms licensing procedures and achieve greater consistency across police forces.
A refreshed version of the Statutory Guidance was reissued in February this year. This followed a first-year review of the guidance.
Asked by: Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of legislation on the ownership of firearms.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
We keep our controls on firearms under constant review to safeguard against abuse by criminals and terrorists and to minimise the risk to public safety.
The Coroner at the Inquest into the fatal shootings at Keyham issued Prevention of Future Deaths Reports on 8 March with recommendations for the Government to consider in relation to firearms licensing legislation. In addition, we are also considering recommendations from the Independent Office for Police Conduct, in relation to their investigation in respect of the Keyham shootings, and recommendations from the Scottish Affairs Select Committee in respect of their inquiry following the fatal shooting on the Isle of Skye.
On 1 November 2021, we published new Statutory Guidance for Chief Officers of Police on firearms licensing. Police forces have a legal duty to have regard to this guidance when carrying out their firearms licensing function. The Statutory Guidance provides guidance to the police on assessing the suitability of applicants to possess firearms, including applications made for shotgun certificates, and is helping to improve the quality of police firearms licensing procedures and achieve greater consistency across police forces.
A refreshed version of the Statutory Guidance was reissued in February this year. This followed a first-year review of the guidance.
Asked by: Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans the Government has to ban the sale of nitrous oxide canisters.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
On 3 September 2021, the Government asked the independent statutory advisory body, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), to provide an updated assessment of the harms of nitrous oxide, including advice on whether it should be controlled under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.
The ACMD is independent of Government and can provide a broad range of recommendations, including advice on regulatory or legislative changes. The Government will consider the ACMD advice carefully before deciding how to proceed.
Asked by: Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to make it an offence to harass the victims of terror attacks.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat
This Government is determined to make sure that victims of terrorism receive the support they deserve. Victims of terrorism are provided with practical and emotional support from specialist service providers, enabling them to cope with the immediate impact of a terrorist attack and to recover from the longer-term consequences.
No victim should ever have to face harassment after experiencing trauma. The Government is determined to do everything possible to protect all victims of harassment and stop perpetrators at the earliest opportunity. Anyone who thinks they are being harassed should report any incidents to the police.
In addition, under the online safety bill, any company whose services host user-generated content (those which allow users to post their own content online or interact with each other), and search engines, will need to proactively remove and prevent users from encountering the most serious and prevalent illegal content - including content relating to harassment and stalking offences. They will need to swiftly take down any illegal content where they become aware of it. Users will be better able to report abuse, and should expect to receive an appropriate response from the platform.
Asked by: Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing visa free travel for people wishing to visit the UK from Serbia.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The UK keeps its visa system under regular review. Decisions on changes reflect a range of factors. These will vary globally, but often include security, compliance, returns and prosperity.
Asked by: Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the penalties are for people found using e-scooters illegally.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
There are various offences relating to illegal e-scooter use that the police can enforce with a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN): uninsured driving can result in a FPN of £300 and 6 penalty points on a driving licence; riding without a driving licence can result in a FPN of £100 and 3-6 penalty points on a driving licence; while riding on the pavement can result in a FPN of £50. Section 165 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 provides the power to seize privately owned e-scooters for driving without insurance or a driving licence.
Enforcement of road traffic law and deployment of available resources to tackle illegal riding of e-scooters is an operational matter for Chief Officers according to local policing plans.
Asked by: Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to encourage the reporting of LGBT+ hate crimes.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
Increases in police recorded hate crime have been partly driven by general improvements in crime recording, better identification of what constitutes a hate crime by the police and increased victim willingness to come forward.
This is positive and reflects the hard work that has gone in to ensuring police can target their resources and understand the scale of the challenge, and that victims get the support they need.
The Government’s new strategy for tackling hate crime will be published shortly. This strategy will set out steps to increase the reporting of all forms of hate crime – including hate crimes targeting sexual orientation or transgender identity – building on our achievements under the 2016-20 Hate Crime Action Plan.
Asked by: Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of restricting the sale of nitrous oxide capsules to prevent their illegal use.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The Government takes the supply of substances for their psychoactive effect seriously. There are legitimate uses for nitrous oxide, such as in medicine, dentistry and as a propellant for whipped cream canisters, but those who supply nitrous oxide who know, or who are reckless as to whether, it will be used for its psychoactive effect may be subject to a maximum sentence of seven years’ imprisonment, an unlimited fine, or both under the Psychoactive Substances Act 2016.
On 3 September, the Government asked the independent statutory advisory body, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs, to provide an updated assessment of the harms of nitrous oxide, including whether it should be controlled under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. The ACMD is independent of Government and provides a broad range of recommendations, including advice on legislative changes. The Government will consider the ACMD’s advice carefully before deciding how to proceed.
Asked by: Alberto Costa (Conservative - South Leicestershire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department has taken to tackle the increase of violent hate crimes in (a) Leicestershire and (b) England.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
All forms of hate crime are completely unacceptable.
Whilst the biggest driver for the increase in recorded crime is general improvements in police recording, along with increased victim willingness to come forward, we cannot be complacent. That is why we have committed to publishing a new Hate Crime Strategy this year to set out the Government’s plan for tackling these abhorrent crimes.
The Government will continue to work with the police and stakeholders to understand what more can be done to address hate crime trends.