Government Support for Ukrainians
Graeme Downie Excerpts(4 days, 23 hours ago)
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Seema Malhotra
I am indeed very grateful to my hon. Friend’s constituents in Newcastle-under-Lyme for the work they have done and the welcome they have provided. On that subject, I have seen the work that has gone on in my own constituency at Cranford community college, along with One World Strong, led by Alan Fraser and Kevin Prunty, an initiative that builds relationships and partnerships between schools, allowing young people in the UK and Ukraine to share their lives, their challenges and their outlooks.
I will turn to the Home Office’s role within what is clearly a cross-Government effort. The Department works closely with key partners including the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, which has a close relationship with local authorities, devolved Governments and the European Union.
Graeme Downie (Dunfermline and Dollar) (Lab)
This weekend I met with Karine Osipyan and Artur Manucharyan, who have been told by the Home Office that they were granted permission under the Ukraine family scheme in error, and that their application under the Ukraine permission extension scheme might not be granted. I wrote to the Home Office at the beginning of June on their case but we have yet to hear back. Will the Minister look into this case specifically and meet me to discuss it further?
Seema Malhotra
I thank my hon. Friend for raising that case. He will understand that I cannot comment on individual cases on the Floor of the House, but I assure him that my officials have his constituents’ details and will certainly review their case, and I will update him in the coming days.
Members have asked about any further extensions to the Ukraine permission extension scheme, which we introduced in February to provide an additional 18 months of permission to stay in the UK, with continued access to work, benefits, healthcare and education, as the Prime Minister referred to in Prime Minister’s questions last week. However, I confirm to the House that we will be extending the leave beyond 18 months. We are still working on the detail of that and will update the House as soon as possible. That is important. I understand the comments, questions and challenges and the need to provide certainty, particularly in relation to education, which was also very much on the Home Secretary’s mind.
Oral Answers to Questions
Graeme Downie Excerpts(4 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Bridget Phillipson
That is the kind of hyperbole that we often get from the right hon. Gentleman. From that question, and from the shameless sense of pride—the misplaced sense of pride—that Conservative Members often have, you would not know that one in three children are not school ready, one in five children are regularly out of school, and our scores were dropping, contrary to what the right hon. Gentleman has suggested. We face big challenges around standards and a huge disadvantage gap. There is a lot that this Labour Government are having to turn around to ensure that all children get a great start in life.
Graeme Downie (Dunfermline and Dollar) (Lab)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education (Janet Daby)
My hon. Friend is right. The first set of statistics released under the Labour Government shows that apprenticeship starts, participation and achievements are all on the up, compared with the same period under the Tories. We have celebrated by going further and faster to cut red tape, so that up to 10,000 more apprentices can achieve each year. That is a clear contrast to the failures that we saw under the Tories for 14 years and the continued failure of the SNP. It is time for change in Scotland, and only Labour can deliver that change.