Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what criteria his Department uses to determine whether it can enter into discussions on establishing potential asylum partnerships akin to the UK-Rwanda Migration and Economic Development Partnership.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is continuing to work with a range of international partners to tackle global illegal migration challenges. Our focus has been on passing the Safety of Rwanda Bill, which builds on the Illegal Migration Act, and putting plans in place to get flights off the ground as soon as possible to Rwanda.
A range of factors need to be taken into consideration for migration partnerships, including the human rights situation in the country.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of people who have claimed asylum since 20 July 2023 will be subject to the duty to remove imposed by the Illegal Migration Act.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson - Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
The Illegal Migration Act was introduced on 7th of March 2023 and received Royal Assent on 20 July 2023. Individuals who entered or arrived illegally from 20 July 2023 will be subject to the duty to remove (section 2 of the Illegal Migration Act) once commenced.
Once the act is commenced, official numbers will be available.
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, as well as quality and availability of data. The Government’s published data on illegal migration (available here: Statistics relating to Illegal Migration - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)).
The Government’s priority is to deter individuals from making dangerous, illegal, and unnecessary journeys to the UK.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress his Department has made on processing asylum applications for people who arrived in the UK between 7 March and 19 July 2023.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
In 2023 we met the Prime Minister's pledge to clear the legacy backlog of asylum cases made before 28 June 2022. The Home Office is now prioritising claims (lodged on or after 28 June 2022).
These are being considered under provisions in the Nationality and Borders Act 2022. It is only right that we consider the oldest claims first.
Our priority is to consider claims as efficiently as possible, in order to process claims efficiently, and reduce the number of people on asylum support, in turn reducing the burden on taxpayers.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been convicted under section 53 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 in each year since 2010.
Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
The Ministry of Justice holds data on the number of offenders convicted under section 53 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, covering the period requested. This is publicly available and can be obtained through the Outcomes by Offence Data tool, using HO offence code: 02418 – Controlling a prostitute for gain.
The information is published quarterly as part of the Criminal Justice System statistics.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to Qq 5 to 13 of the oral evidence given by his Department's Permanent Secretary to the Committee of Public Accounts on 15 April 2024, HC 639, when he plans to publish accounting officer advice relating to the (a) Illegal Migration Act 2023 and (b) Safety of Rwanda Bill.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson - Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
As the Permanent Secretary stated during the Public Accounts Committee evidence session on 15 April 2024, in his capacity as Accounting Officer (AO) he keeps all assessments under review, including where this relates to the Illegal Migration Act and the Safety of Rwanda Bill. In line with the guidance in Managing Public Money, the Department publishes summary AO assessments on projects that are part of the Government Major Projects Portfolio, once they receive Outline Business Case stage. The summary assessments referred to will be handled in line with due process.