Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Afghan refugees remain in hotels following their arrival in the UK in summer 2021.
Answered by Kevin Foster
In 2021, the UK Government undertook the biggest and fastest emergency evacuation in recent history, helping over 15,000 people to safety from Afghanistan. Since the end of Op PITTING, we have brought a further c.4,000 Afghans to the UK. Due to the scale and pace of the evacuation we were not able to source appropriate accommodation in the normal way, so we have had to use hotels as a temporary measure.
As of 18 July 2022, we are currently providing temporary accommodation for c.9,500 individuals resettling in the UK under the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP) or Afghan Citizen Resettlement Scheme (ACRS), whilst they await permanent accommodation.
Over 7000 Afghans have already moved or are in the process of being moved into their permanent accommodation. In addition to the work, we are doing to provide appropriate accommodation for Afghans, a number of families have, in recent months, taken steps to secure their own accommodation.
The cost of accommodating those resetting under ACRS or ARAP, whilst they await permanent accommodation, is estimated at £1 million a day. The Home Office works to secure contracts which offer the best value for money, whilst providing an appropriate level of support to those under its care.
We do not want to see Afghan families in temporary accommodation for any longer than is absolutely necessary. We are therefore working with local authorities across the UK to identify more opportunities for those being housed in bridging hotels to move into permanent accommodation.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the expected completion time is for a child's first passport application submitted in 2022.
Answered by Kevin Foster
All applicants using the standard service from the UK are advised to allow up to ten weeks to get their passport, including children applying for their first passport.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the expected completion time is for applications to the Homes for Ukraine scheme made in 2022.
Answered by Kevin Foster
UKVI have issued thousands of visas under the Homes for Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme. The latest figures can be found here: Ukraine Family Scheme and Ukraine Sponsorship Scheme (Homes for Ukraine) visa data - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Applications are being processed as quickly as possible, with an aim of deciding the majority within 48 hours where we can do so.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the (a) target response time for visa applications through the Homes for Ukraine scheme is and (b) current response time is.
Answered by Kevin Foster
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on what date she received Bishop James Jones' report on the experience of the Hillsborough families.
Answered by Nick Hurd
Bishop James Jones submitted his report into the experiences of the Hillsborough families to the Home Secretary on 20 June 2017. The report is being considered by the Government. The report and the Government’s response will be published in due course.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the Government plans to publish (a) Bishop James Jones' report into the experiences of the Hillsborough families and (b) the Government's response to that report.
Answered by Nick Hurd
Bishop James Jones submitted his report into the experiences of the Hillsborough families to the Home Secretary on 20 June 2017. The report is being considered by the Government. The report and the Government’s response will be published in due course.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government has prepared its response to Bishop James Jones' report into the experiences of the Hillsborough families.
Answered by Nick Hurd
Bishop James Jones submitted his report into the experiences of the Hillsborough families to the Home Secretary on 20 June 2017. The report is being considered by the Government. The report and the Government’s response will be published in due course.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the proportion of businesses with a turnover of £36 million or more which are complying with the provisions of section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015.
Answered by Sarah Newton
The Government has not estimated what proportion of businesses have complied so far. We published guidance in October 2015 advising that businesses should report as soon as reasonably practicable after their financial year end, which in practice should mean within six months of an organisation’s financial year end.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to promote the guidance, Transparency in supply chains: a practical guide, issued under section 54(9) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015.
Answered by Sarah Newton
Ministers and officials promote the guidance at events on transparency in supply chains and in response to a range of queries from businesses, trade bodies and non-governmental organisations . We have also promoted transparency in supply chains legislation to other governments, both in bilateral meetings and through multilateral fora, including at G7, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe events.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Birkenhead)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans her Department has to support local authorities in integrating refugees into British society.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Home Office funds strategic migration partnerships which are local authority-led partnerships designed to provide structures and support services for those organisations working with migrants and refugees in local communities.
The Home Office also provides a dedicated integration loan directly to recognised refugees. The loan is designed to help refugees integrate into UK society by offering financial support towards housing costs, employment and training.