Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many of the Syrian refugees planned to be taken in by the UK by 2020 will be located in each (a) constituent nation and region and (b) local authority area in the UK.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement scheme is voluntary and there has been a tremendous amount of goodwill from local authorities. Some of those authorities have not resettled people in the initial phases of the scheme, but will be resettling people in the future. We ask local authorities who have pledged their help be sure they have the infrastructure and support networks needed to ensure the appropriate care and integration of these refugees before telling us how many individuals they believe they are able to resettle. Once a local authority has pledged to resettle refugees – however many – we work with them to ensure there are suitable accommodation and care packages in place in that authority area in order for resettlement to take place. We will only place individuals in a particular area once we’ve ensured these arrangements are in place and will manage the flows based on need and in support of the wellbeing of the people and communities involved.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans her Department has to work with the Local Government Association to explore the possibility of accommodating more than 20,000 Syrian refugees by 2020.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The UK has already committed to resettling 20,000 Syrian refugees from the region during this parliament and we have no plans to increase this at the present time. Our priorities are humanitarian aid and actively seeking an end to the conflict in Syria.
We believe this approach is the best way to ensure that the UK’s help has the greatest impact for the majority of refugees who remain in the region and their host countries. The government has been working with the Local Government Association, local authorities and devolved administrations across the UK in order to ensure we have the capacity and infrastructure to meet our commitment to resettle 20,000 vulnerable Syrians by the end of this Parliament.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans her Department has to publish regular updates on progress on accepting Syrian refugees into the UK.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Home Office is committed to publishing data in an orderly way as part of the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.
Latest statistics published on 25 August confirmed that a total of a total of 2,898 Syrians have been resettled under the scheme since it began, 2,646 of these arriving since 1 October 2015.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the Government plans to publish a comprehensive plan for resettling 20,000 Syrian refugees in the UK by 2020.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
We intend to resettle up to 20,000 Syrians in need of protection during this Parliament. We will continue to work closely with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to identify appropriate cases, prioritising the most vulnerable. The numbers resettled in a particular period will depend on a range of factors including the flow of referrals from UNHCR in the field and the availability of suitable accommodation and care packages in the UK. We will manage the flows based on need and in support of the wellbeing of the people and communities involved, rather than rushing to meet arbitrary targets. However, we are clear that we want to help as many people as we can as quickly as possible.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress the Government has made towards its target of resettling 20,000 Syrian refugees in the UK by 2020.
Answered by Robert Goodwill
The Home Office is committed to publishing data in an orderly way as part of the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics, in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. Latest statistics published on 25 August confirmed that a total of a total of 2,898 Syrians have been resettled under the scheme since it began, 2,646 of these arriving since 1 October 2015.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to ensure the target of 20,000 resettled Syrian refugees is met by the end of this Parliament.
Answered by Lord Harrington of Watford
On 16 December 2015, the Prime Minister informed the House we had met our commitment of resettling 1,000 Syrians before Christmas. By hitting this target we have shown that we are on track to resettle 20,000 during the life of this parliament. The Government is working closely with local authorities, international delivery partners and the voluntary sector, putting in place the plans and structures to deliver this and ensuring the system is scaled up in a way that protects the interests of all concerned.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions her Department has conducted with its French counterpart on co-ordinating humanitarian relief efforts in Calais.
Answered by James Brokenshire
The Home Office is in regular discussions with French counterparts at ministerial and official level on all aspects of the migrant situation in Calais. The French Government is responsible for the care of migrants in Calais, including support over the winter. However, both governments are committed to finding a sustainable solution to the situation in Calais. One aspect of the UK-France Joint Declaration of 20 August, committed the UK to providing a £3.6 million (or €5 million) per year for two years to help support a range of work to manage the migrant population in Calais, in particular to provide support and facilities elsewhere in France. Additionally, the UK has provided £530,000 (€750,000) to fund a project to identify those in the camps at risk of trafficking and exploitation, to transfer them to places of safety; and to provide them with appropriate support within the French system.
The UK and French Governments are unified in their response to the migratory phenomenon and both governments recognise the importance of close partnership and collaboration to reach a long-term solution. This is a global challenge, and we will also work together to ensure that other EU states, as well as source and transit countries outside Europe, are doing everything they ought to be to stop people making these dangerous journeys in the first place.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assistance and advice her Department is providing to UK volunteers offering assistance to refugees in Calais.
Answered by James Brokenshire
The Home Office is in regular discussions with French counterparts at ministerial and official level on all aspects of the migrant situation in Calais. The French Government is responsible for the care of migrants in Calais, including support over the winter. However, both governments are committed to finding a sustainable solution to the situation in Calais. One aspect of the UK-France Joint Declaration of 20 August, committed the UK to providing a £3.6 million (or €5 million) per year for two years to help support a range of work to manage the migrant population in Calais, in particular to provide support and facilities elsewhere in France. Additionally, the UK has provided £530,000 (€750,000) to fund a project to identify those in the camps at risk of trafficking and exploitation, to transfer them to places of safety; and to provide them with appropriate support within the French system.
The UK and French Governments are unified in their response to the migratory phenomenon and both governments recognise the importance of close partnership and collaboration to reach a long-term solution. This is a global challenge, and we will also work together to ensure that other EU states, as well as source and transit countries outside Europe, are doing everything they ought to be to stop people making these dangerous journeys in the first place.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions she has had with her French counterpart on securing a long-term solution to the situation in Calais.
Answered by James Brokenshire
The Home Office is in regular discussions with French counterparts at ministerial and official level on all aspects of the migrant situation in Calais. The French Government is responsible for the care of migrants in Calais, including support over the winter. However, both governments are committed to finding a sustainable solution to the situation in Calais. One aspect of the UK-France Joint Declaration of 20 August, committed the UK to providing a £3.6 million (or €5 million) per year for two years to help support a range of work to manage the migrant population in Calais, in particular to provide support and facilities elsewhere in France. Additionally, the UK has provided £530,000 (€750,000) to fund a project to identify those in the camps at risk of trafficking and exploitation, to transfer them to places of safety; and to provide them with appropriate support within the French system.
The UK and French Governments are unified in their response to the migratory phenomenon and both governments recognise the importance of close partnership and collaboration to reach a long-term solution. This is a global challenge, and we will also work together to ensure that other EU states, as well as source and transit countries outside Europe, are doing everything they ought to be to stop people making these dangerous journeys in the first place.
Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what preparations her Department has made for the increased level of aid required in Calais when winter sets in.
Answered by James Brokenshire
The Home Office is in regular discussions with French counterparts at ministerial and official level on all aspects of the migrant situation in Calais. The French Government is responsible for the care of migrants in Calais, including support over the winter. However, both governments are committed to finding a sustainable solution to the situation in Calais. One aspect of the UK-France Joint Declaration of 20 August, committed the UK to providing a £3.6 million (or €5 million) per year for two years to help support a range of work to manage the migrant population in Calais, in particular to provide support and facilities elsewhere in France. Additionally, the UK has provided £530,000 (€750,000) to fund a project to identify those in the camps at risk of trafficking and exploitation, to transfer them to places of safety; and to provide them with appropriate support within the French system.
The UK and French Governments are unified in their response to the migratory phenomenon and both governments recognise the importance of close partnership and collaboration to reach a long-term solution. This is a global challenge, and we will also work together to ensure that other EU states, as well as source and transit countries outside Europe, are doing everything they ought to be to stop people making these dangerous journeys in the first place.