Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he plans to respond to the recommendations of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 Review: Second Interim Report, published on 22 January 2019, and whether he intends to accept the findings in the report.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
The Home Office will formally respond to the recommendations of the Independent Review of the Modern Slavery Act, following submission of its final report and recommendations to the Home Secretary by the end of March 2019.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of being unable to access public funds on the ability to leave exploitative employment of workers under the (a) seasonal agricultural workers scheme pilot and (b) proposed 12-month short-term work visa scheme.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The Seasonal Workers pilot will use scheme operators to ensure that migrant workers are matched with suitable UK employers.
The short-term work visa proposals set out in the recent White Paper are consistent with our approach to our existing mobility arrangements, which do not permit access to public funds.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the consultation on his 19 December 2018 White Paper entitled The UK’s future skills-based immigration system will include the two proposed short-term work visas described in chapter 6 of that paper; and when that consultation will (a) begin and (b) conclude.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The Government published its White Paper “The UK’s future skills-based immigration system” (Cm 9722) on 19 December 2018. The Home Office is launching a 12-month engagement process to enable businesses and other stakeholders to shape the final details of policy and processes contained within the White Paper.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when he plans to respond to the letter of 22 August 2018 from the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent Central on the closure of the Stoke-on-Trent immigration reporting centre.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
I apologise for the delay in responding to your letter of 22 August 2018. The Home Office is required to respond to such correspondence within 20 working days, and I am sorry that it has not been possible to provide a full reply within that timeframe. The response was issued on the 9th October 2018.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether workers coming to the UK under the forthcoming Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme pilot will be provided with pre-departure information on UK labour laws before arrival in the UK.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The Seasonal Workers Pilot will be managed by two licenced scheme operators. These licencing arrangements place a clear responsibility on the scheme operators to ensure the well-being of participating migrant workers, including ensuring that their employment rights are protected.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the additional funding required by the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority to fulfil its role under the new Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme pilot; and whether such additional funding will be provided.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
I refer the Honourable Member to the response that I gave to a question from the Honourable Member for Manchester, Gorton on 17 December 2018 (201233).
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information his Department holds on the rate of remuneration for (a) cleaners, (b) security guards and (c) catering staff in his Department in (i) Greater London and (ii) outside Greater London.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
Cleaning services, security guarding services and catering services across the department are mostly outsourced. Suppliers are responsible for setting rates of pay for their staff and rates vary dependent on their age, location and market rates. All suppliers are required to pay, as a minimum, either the National Minimum Wage or the National Living Wage. The rates set by government for the National Minimum Wage and the National Living Wage are to rise in April 2019.
Security guards who are Home Office employees receive the appropriate spot rate for their grade, plus shift and unsocial hours payments where applicable. All Home Office reward packages are in compliance with the National Minimum Wage Act.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what correspondence his Department has had from Stoke-on-Trent City Council on partnership working with his Department to accelerate decision making for asylum seekers and other residents who have no recourse to public funds.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
The Home Office is unable to find trace of correspondence received from Stoke-on-Trent City Council regarding Partnership working with the Department to accelerate decision making for asylum-seekers and other residents who have no recourse to public funds.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance his Department provides to Police and Crime Commissioners on the proportion of their budget that should be used for the running of their offices.
Answered by Nick Hurd
The Government does not issue guidance to Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) on the proportion of their budget that should be used for administration costs. Under the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011, it is the responsibility of PCCs to determine how each police area’s funding settlement is allocated, including setting the police force budget and the running of the PCC’s office.
The 2011 Act specifies that PCCs must publish key information as prescribed by the Secretary of State. The Elected Local Policing Bodies (Specified Information) order 2011 (and amended in 2012) sets out what information must be published: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2011/3050/contents/made
The publication of this information enables the local electorate to judge whether the PCC is making the best use of public money at the ballot box.
Police and Crime Panels (PCPs) have the power to scrutinise the actions and decisions of PCCs and enable the public to hold them to account. They have oversight of the commissioner’s key documents, decisions and reports, and conduct the majority of their business in public, ensuring information is available to the electorate.
Asked by: Gareth Snell (Labour (Co-op) - Stoke-on-Trent Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the fifty fourth report of the Public Accounts Committee of Session 2013-14 entitled COMPASS: provision of asylum accommodation, HC 1000, what measures his Department have in place to respond to the lessons learned following the transition to and implementation of the COMPASS contracts in preparations for the transition to the new contracts.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
Since the establishment of the Asylum Accommodation and Support Transformation Project in the autumn of 2016, there has been extensive consideration of lessons learnt from the existing contracts, stakeholder feedback and external review documents, including the fifty fourth report from the Public Accounts Committee.
The new contracts include over 400 substantive changes that will provide a more accessible and easy to navigate system which ensures the safety, security and welfare of service users and their host communities. These changes will include a longer mobilisation and transition period; improved data quality and sharing with providers and a more robust contract compliance regime to improve accommodation standards.