Oral Answers to Questions Debate

Full Debate: Read Full Debate
Department: Home Office

Oral Answers to Questions

Fleur Anderson Excerpts
Monday 12th July 2021

(2 years, 8 months ago)

Commons Chamber
Read Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Kit Malthouse Portrait Kit Malthouse
- Parliament Live - Hansard - - - Excerpts

As our lives have moved increasingly online, so has crime, as my hon. Friend rightly says. Can there be any Member in the Chamber who has not received a dodgy email or text or even a recorded message on their telephone, which is becoming increasingly frequent? It is typical of my hon. Friend to point out the particular vulnerability of elderly people, who are often coming to grips with technology—many have had to do so over the past year or so for the first time in their lives—and being taken advantage of. He is right to say that we need to do all we can to help them, and through the economic crime victim care unit we are doing exactly that. We are working with the banking sector to ensure that victims are not left out of pocket through no fault of their own. Critically, we can all help the fight by reporting these emails and text messages, and I want to take a moment to say that anyone who gets a suspicious email should please forward it to the email address report@phishing.gov.uk and anyone who receives a similarly suspicious text should please forward it to 7726. The police and other services will be collating the texts and emails, and when they come from the same source, as they do on many occasions, they will act swiftly to shut it down.

Fleur Anderson Portrait Fleur Anderson (Putney) (Lab)
- Hansard - -

What estimate she has made of the number of people who are eligible for the EU settlement scheme but missed the application deadline of 30 June 2021.

Kate Osborne Portrait Kate Osborne (Jarrow) (Lab)
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

What estimate she has made of the number of people who are eligible for the EU settlement scheme but missed the application deadline of 30 June 2021.

Priti Patel Portrait The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Priti Patel)
- Parliament Live - Hansard - - - Excerpts

As of 30 June, the EU settlement scheme had received more than 6 million applications and issued more than 5.1 million grants of status. As we have discussed before, the scheme has been a success and we have secured the status of 5.1 million individuals.

Fleur Anderson Portrait Fleur Anderson [V]
- Parliament Live - Hansard - -

I am disappointed not to hear the exact number. In Wandsworth, there are an estimated 41,000 EU citizens, but the gap in applications to the EU settlement scheme is not known. Can the Home Secretary say which resources she is making available to process the 500,000 or so applications that are currently in the system but have not yet been determined, and how long she would envisage allowing late applications to the scheme?

Priti Patel Portrait Priti Patel
- Parliament Live - Hansard - - - Excerpts

As I have said, the scheme has been a phenomenal success. There are many naysayers across the country and in this House who refused to believe that even 3 million people would be registered with the scheme. First and foremost, there is an abundance of support available for applicants, including from the 72 organisations to which the Home Office has granted £22 million of support for vulnerable groups and individuals to apply to the scheme. On top of that, we have invested £8 million in communications, and that involves working with local authorities such as the hon. Lady’s to ensure that no one is missed and that all the support is in the place for them.