Unaccompanied Asylum-seeking Children Debate

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Department: Home Office

Unaccompanied Asylum-seeking Children

Damien Moore Excerpts
Tuesday 24th January 2023

(1 year, 3 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Robert Jenrick Portrait Robert Jenrick
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The hon. Lady and I have met to discuss the issue on a number of occasions. We take this very seriously. We have asked all our providers, of course, to take their responsibilities for safeguarding seriously. We have a safeguarding hub in the Home Office and we work closely with the local authorities, which also have a duty to support people in their care.

The hotels that we are discussing today are not run by private providers. There are providers that support us in terms of security arrangements, but these hotels are run by the Home Office, so the hon. Lady is not correct to say that they are run by external providers. But that does not change the reality that, as I have said on a number of occasions, we should take the care of these minors as seriously as we would take that of our own children. I hope that I have given her the assurance that we do.

Damien Moore Portrait Damien Moore (Southport) (Con)
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Does my right hon. Friend agree that to place vulnerable asylum-seeking children in the care of local authorities whose Ofsted rating is inadequate is a dereliction of not only our international but our moral obligations?