Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they keep a contact database of all locally employed civilian interpreters who have worked for UK Armed Forces in Afghanistan.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
Due to the time elapsed since employment, and the security vulnerabilities inherent in using contact details that are over a decade old in some cases, we do not and cannot maintain a contact database of all locally employed staff who have worked for UK Armed Forces in Afghanistan. Our locally employed civilian interpreters are able to contact us through our dedicated team the Afghanistan Threat and Risk Evaluation Unit (ATREU) with the contact details available on the gov.uk website.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy will be administered solely by UK Embassy staff or whether any provision for its delivery will be contracted out to private companies.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy is an MOD owned policy which is jointly administered by the MOD, Home Office and FCDO. Initial contact will be with the expert in theatre team, with assistance from officials from the other Government departments named above at different stages of the process. The delivery of the scheme is supported in Kabul by the International Office Of Migration who facilitate some of the in-country activity. Currently HMG has no plans for private companies to support.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many (1) interpreters, and (2) members of interpreters' families, have been accepted for relocation but have not yet been relocated under the (a) ex gratia redundancy scheme, and (b) the intimidation policy; and when they expect that they will be relocated.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
A total of 104 former locally employed staff are eligible for relocation under the Ex-Gratia Scheme and are still in the process of being relocated. All but two are interpreters. We cannot comment with certainty on the number of family members, because some of the eligible applicants are not yet at the stage of the process where this is known.
The Intimidation Policy closed on 31 March 2021. It was replaced by the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy on 01 April 2021. There are no outstanding relocations under the Intimidation Policy.
A total of 107 current and former locally employed staff are eligible for relocation under the new Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy and are still in the process of being relocated. Most are interpreters. We cannot comment with certainty on the number of family members, because some of the eligible applicants are not yet at the stage of the process where this is known. I expect that these former and current locally employed staff and their families will be relocated before 11 September 2021.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many (1) interpreters, and (2) members of interpreters' families, have been relocated from Afghanistan to the UK under the (a) ex gratia redundancy scheme, and (b) intimidation policy.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
A total of 448 locally employed staff and 910 family members have been relocated from Afghanistan to the UK, 1,358 in total. Of those, all but six were interpreters. Four were relocated under the Intimidation Policy, one under the new Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy which came into force on 1 April 2021, and the remainder under the Ex-Gratia Scheme.
The Intimidation Policy closed on 31 March 2021. It was replaced by the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy on 1 April 2021 and one relocation has taken place so far under that scheme.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many locally employed civilian interpreters who (1) have previously worked, or (2) currently work, for the UK Armed Forces (a) remain in Afghanistan, and (b) have fled to a third country.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
UK Armed Forces do not currently employ any locally employed civilian interpreters in Afghanistan. Of those locally employed civilian interpreters who previously worked for UK Armed Forces, we do not hold any information on how many remain in Afghanistan; it would be impossible to maintain such a record, as it would require regular updates from those who left employment with us between four and 20 years ago. Our locally employed civilian interpreters do not update us as to their whereabouts. Of those locally employed civilian interpreters who previously worked for UK Armed Forces, we are aware of 15 who are currently in a third country. Not all would be eligible for relocation even if they in Afghanistan.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the report by the International Relations and Defence Committee The UK and Afghanistan, published on 13 January (HL Paper 208), and the recommendation that "all Afghan interpreters who worked for the UK military, including those now resident in third countries, [should be]...able to access the provisions of the ex-gratia scheme", whether they plan to consider applications for relocation to the UK from former interpreters in third countries; and if not, why not.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The ex-gratia scheme and intimidation policy currently available for Afghan locally engaged staff (LES), along with the Relocations and Assistance Scheme to be introduced later this year, require applicants to be in Afghanistan where they are likely to face the greatest risk. The Government keeps the Immigration Rules under regular review, and officials from the Ministry of Defence continue to work with the Home Office to consider options to support those under threat. We will always consider exceptionally compelling and compassionate circumstances on a case-by-case basis.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many (1) Afghan interpreters, and (2) family members of Afghan interpreters, have been cleared for relocation to the UK but are awaiting transfer; how long on average they have been waiting; and when they anticipate relocations to take place.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
Through the Ex-Gratia Scheme, 445 former Locally Employed Civilians (LECs - this includes interpreters) and their families have relocated to the UK. This means that Her Majesty's Government has already supported over 1,300 individuals in creating new lives in the UK. A further 350 staff have benefitted from our in-country finance and training packages.
There are two former LECs cleared for relocation to the UK but who are awaiting transfer. These two former LECs between them have seven family members who have also been cleared for relocation. There are a further nine family members of other former LECs whose visas have been accepted and who have been referred to Local Authorities in advance of their relocation.
Verifications were completed in January 2020, so the average wait time is circa eight months. However, there has been an adverse impact on relocations from the COVID 19 pandemic; it has affected all parties to the process, from the Ministry of Defence and the Home Office to Local Authorities and partners such as the Afghan Government and the International Organization for Migration. Subject to conditions outside of our control we expect all these individuals to be relocated in the next 12 months.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Goldie on 22 October (HL21, previously HL18069), what is the new policy relating to threats to and intimidation of interpreters in theatre in Afghanistan; and how it differs from the previous policy.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The Ministry of Defence has not previously placed a formal obligation upon contractors providing services in operational theatres to provide support to local employees who might face increased risk as a result of their association with the UK Armed Forces.
Under the new approach, the requirement for contractors to do so will be included within the Statements of Requirement for services where the Department has assessed that individuals recruited locally by the contractor could be at risk of being intimidated as a result of their association with UK Armed Forces such as the provision of interpreter support in countries including, but not limited to, Afghanistan. The Ministry of Defence would expect that any contractor working in these locations would undertake a range of measures that would effectively mitigate threats to employees. The cost of any such measures would be included in the costs charged to the Ministry of Defence.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by Earl Howe on 17 June (HL Deb, col 655), whether the Ministry of Defence review of security clearance procedures for Afghan interpreters who have been relocated to the United Kingdom has been completed; and, if so, what changes have been made to facilitate their employment by NATO.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
The review of security clearance policy for interpreters deployed in support of military operations is ongoing and nearing its conclusion. In the interim, requests by interpreters for security clearances are being considered on a case-by-case basis.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government when the contract with thebigword to provide interpreting and translation services to the United Kingdom armed forces in Afghanistan will be reviewed.
Answered by Baroness Goldie
Joint Forces Command manages the current contract with The Big Word. However, this is being replaced with contract award expected in the first half of next year. Included in the Statement of Requirement - which bidders will quote against - is the new policy relating to threats and intimidation of interpreters in theatre.