Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment her Department has made of the effect of the rise of anti-Semitic hate crime on the safety of Jewish people.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
Antisemitism must be understood for what it is - an attack on the identity of people who live, contribute and are valued in our society. There can be no excuses for antisemitism or any other form of racism or prejudice.
In 2020/21, 22% of religious hate crimes were targeted at Jewish people, or those perceived to be Jewish - 1288 reported incidents, up from 1205 the previous year.
In April 2021, the Home Secretary confirmed the continuation of the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant for 2021-22. This grant of £14m continues to provide for protective security measures at all Jewish state, free and independent schools, colleges, nurseries and some other Jewish community sites, including a number of synagogues.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education and the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on the availability and accessibility of Healthy Start vouchers for people within the immigration and asylum systems.
Answered by Kevin Foster
Asylum seekers are provided with accommodation and support to meet their essential living needs if they would otherwise be destitute. They are given free, furnished accommodation, and a weekly cash allowance (currently £40.85) to cover other essential living needs such as clothing.
In addition to this support, asylum seekers who are pregnant and young children aged between one year and three years each receive an additional £3 per week. Babies under one year receive an additional £5 per week.
Asylum seekers who are pregnant are also eligible to apply for a one-off £300 maternity payment within eight weeks of their due date or if their baby is under six weeks old. These payments are intended to allow supported asylum seekers to purchase healthy food such as fruit and vegetables.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she is having with the police on (a) investigating and (b) prosecuting landlords that attempt to offer housing in exchange for sexual relations.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The Government is clear that exploitation through ‘sex for rent’ has no place in our society. However, there are two existing offences in the Sexual Offences Act 2003 which can, and have, been used to successfully prosecute this practice. The existing offences of causing or inciting prostitution for gain (section 52 of the 2003 Act) and controlling prostitution for gain (section 53 of the 2003 Act). These offences may capture instances of sex for rent, depending on the circumstances of the case.
We recognise the need to stamp out this abhorrent practice and support those at risk of exploitation. We have already taken action around this:
The Online Safety Bill will include relevant offences relating to the incitement and control of prostitution for gain in the list of ‘priority offences’ which internet companies will need to take proactive steps to tackle. The Bill will capture user-to-user sites, where the majority of ‘sex for rent’ advertising takes place. Furthermore, the Bill places a duty on certain companies to take action in respect to ‘content that is harmful to adults’.
In parallel, officials are working with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the College of Policing, for example, to ensure there is appropriate guidance for policing on the issue of sex-for-rent.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps is her Department taking, in conjunction with the Home Office, to ensure that police forces are meeting published service standards on the speed and efficiency of DBS checks.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
DBS have the following measures in place to ensure police forces are meeting the published service standards on speed and efficiency of DBS checks:
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the DBS Check - Police Performance Summary webpage will be updated to show figures since April 2021.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) publication scheme details which information held by DBS is available to the public. Most of the information that is available through the scheme can be found on the DBS website. Alternatively, it may be provided upon request.
The publication scheme was established in accordance with Section 19 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and in accordance with guidance issued by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
DBS revised their publication scheme in March 2021 to ensure it is in line with DBS published performance standards. Police Performance is a subset of enhanced DBS check data, it does not have a separate DBS public service standard, and has been removed from the publication scheme. There will therefore be no further update of this dataset.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure that the democratic right to protest is maintained through the provisions of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The freedom to peacefully protest across the country is a fundamental right that this Government is proud to support. Most protest activity in this country does not require a police response and we expect that to continue. The public order measures in the PCSC Bill are targeted at non-violent protests that cause serious disruption to the lives of others.
As with all existing powers to manage protests the police must not act incompatibly with the European Convention on Human Rights, namely articles 10 and 11 on the freedoms of expression and assembly, when making use of these measures.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to ensure that the quality of services delivered in the security industry meet an adequate standard.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The Security Industry Authority (SIA) is responsible for its own daily operations, including monitoring compliance with the legislative regime under the Private Security Industry Act 2001.
The SIA has independent inspection and enforcement powers to deliver this objective, along with an independent prosecution function. Anything that falls outside of the legislative regime is not within the SIA’s remit, and is therefore properly a matter for businesses.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to help ensure that training provided within the security industry is of sufficient quality.
Answered by Rachel Maclean
The Security Industry Authority (SIA) is responsible for setting training standards for each of the roles within the private security industry that it licences; this training is a mandatory requirement for obtaining a licence. The SIA reviews its training standards every five years in accordance with its obligations under the Private Security Industry Act 2001, with the most recent changes coming into force in October 2021.
The SIA works closely with the sector to develop standards and promote industry-led continuous professional development. The Home Office is satisfied that the SIA has the expertise to set standards of the appropriate quality.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure that the provisions in the Nationality and Borders Bill help to integrate refugees into UK society.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Nationality and Borders Bill is the cornerstone of the New Plan for Immigration, which sets out the Government’s intentions to build a fair but firm asylum system.
The New Plan for Immigration announced a package of measures to improve integration support so that refugees arriving under safe and legal routes are fully supported to become self-sufficient and integrate well into society. The Enhanced Integration Package will deliver a package of tailored support, such as language training, skills development and employment support to help refugees rebuild their lives. More details will be released on this package in due course. New plan for immigration: legal migration and border control strategy statement (accessible web version) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Refugees coming to the UK through the safe and legal routes our resettlement schemes provide will be granted indefinite leave to remain on arrival, providing them with the certainty and stability they need to rebuild their lives in the UK.
Asked by: Barry Sheerman (Labour (Co-op) - Huddersfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans she has to (a) maintain existing and (b) open new safe and legal routes to asylum in the UK.
Answered by Kevin Foster
While there is no provision within our Immigration Rules for someone to be allowed to travel to the UK to seek asylum or temporary refuge, the UK has a long history of supporting people in need of protection. Our resettlement schemes have provided safe and legal routes for tens of thousands of people to start new lives in the UK.
Since 2015, we have resettled more than 25,000 refugees through safe and legal routes direct from regions of conflict and instability - around half of whom were children. The UK continues to welcome refugees through the global UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS), Mandate Resettlement Scheme and Community Sponsorship Scheme. Additionally, as part of our response to the crisis in Afghanistan, the Government has announced the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) which will bring up to 20,000 people at risk fleeing Afghanistan to safety in the UK.
In addition to our resettlement schemes, we have provided safe and legal routes for tens of thousands of people thorough our refugee family reunion route, Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP) for those who heroically supported our armed forces in Afghanistan and the British National (Overseas) visa route for those affected by draconian laws restricting rights and freedoms in Hong Kong.
The Government’s New Plan for Immigration will see us continue to provide safe and legal routes for those in fear of persecution and oppression in their home country.