Draft Immigration (Age Assessments) Regulations 2023

Debate between Chris Stephens and Kevin Foster

Monday 20th November 2023 General Committees

[Chris Stephens]

It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Mr Hosie.

This Committee is the main course, but I was part of the Committee earlier today that considered the statutory instrument from the Ministry of Justice, which seems to justify whether this change can go ahead. As I say, we are now at the main course and debating whether it should go ahead or not.

I was surprised by the Minister’s answer to me earlier and that he is not aware of any instances of people seeking sanctuary or asylum in the country who claim that they are adults when, in reality, they are children. I have examples from my constituency where that is the case, and I thank Aberlour and other organisations that look after asylum seekers in my constituency for raising these matters and for looking after those individuals. All the asylum charities in Glasgow South West and the great city of Glasgow should be commended for their work in this area.

This is not the mundane statutory instrument that people might think it would be, for the simple reason that this issue is not without controversy, and human rights groups have raised their concerns and condemned the regulations. I wonder whether the Minister can tell us what responses have been given to the human rights groups that have concerns about the Government’s direction in this area, because we need to give regard to the fact that we are dealing with people who have suffered incredible trauma in getting here and in their experiences where they have come from. I know from my case load that some of them are victims of sexual violence, for example. There is a former Immigration Minister on the Government side, and he will be aware that my office and the Home Office are in regular contact every week to discuss the many cases that we have, given that Glasgow is an asylum dispersal area.

I believe that using MRI and X-rays in this area is beyond cruel, and experts are saying that this measure is unethical and will be inaccurate and potentially harmful. I note that the Scottish Government have opposed it, as have human rights groups. One of the reasons is that it risks the rights of children who have already been through unimaginable hardship. For me, it is a question of values. There are also ramifications if one does not participate in the process. The Minister was very candid when he said that if someone does not participate in the process “without reasonable grounds”, it would be damaging to their case. If I understood him correctly, I take that to mean that if someone refuses to participate in the process, they might not receive a positive decision on their asylum claim. There are reasons why people may well refuse to participate, and it may simply come down to a language barrier, for example. As I will come on to, it might be because these particular tests are not even accurate and the science does not support this statutory instrument.

[Kevin Foster]

I recall our many conversations in my previous role about his casework, and the hon. Gentleman is a doughty fighter in this area. If what he says about the process is correct, why do so many countries in Europe use such measures?

[Chris Stephens]

I notice that that has been said, but not one country in Europe was actually named. It will be interesting to see whether the Minister mentions countries in Europe, because I find it curious that this approach is said to be standard in Europe, but not one country was named. I am looking forward to the answer, and I am sure it is being handed to the Minister right now on the little green Post-it note he has in front of him—yes, I am observant.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Chris Stephens and Kevin Foster

Monday 5th September 2022 Commons Chamber

[Chris Stephens (Glasgow South West) (SNP)]

T4.   There are 10,500 Afghan refugees still in accommodation, and I heard the Minister’s answer earlier. When does he anticipate those 10,500 Afghan refugees will be in permanent accommodation?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Kevin Foster)]

As the hon. Gentleman will know, we are working constructively with councils. To be fair, I have to say that Glasgow is stepping forward, as always, to find accommodation. It is about finding suitable accommodation, not just any accommodation for them. We have also had constructive discussions with the Scottish Government—credit where it is due to Neil Gray—about where we may be able to go further in creating housing, particularly in Scotland, to accommodate many of those families; we all want them to be found accommodation in a permanent home.

HM Passport Office Backlogs

Debate between Chris Stephens and Kevin Foster

Wednesday 27th April 2022 Commons Chamber

[Chris Stephens (Glasgow South West) (SNP)]

The failings of private contractors suggest that privatisation is not a solution to passport office backlogs, so will the Minister do two things? First, can he confirm that private contractors have penalty clauses in their contracts, and if so, have they been actioned? Secondly, will he update the advice on the Government website, which says that someone will normally get their passport within five weeks? Not one Member of the House can confidently tell their constituents that, so will he update the Government website to reflect today’s reality?

[Kevin Foster]

I have already spoken about the involvement of private companies, the exception being the decision that is made, for pretty obvious reasons, by directly employed Home Office staff. In terms of the performance of contractors, there are clauses in particular contracts—certainly, as I say, those for Teleperformance. We do not believe that its performance at the moment is at all acceptable, and that has been made very clear.

We are looking at the information that we give, because there is a balance between telling people the time it roughly takes—for example, saying that 90% of applications were dealt with within six weeks between January and March—and being clear that the standard time to allow is 10 weeks. If there is a particular point on the website that does not make that clear, I will be happy to review it.