All 2 Debates between Jeff Smith and Robert Jenrick

Wed 24th May 2023
Student Visas
Commons Chamber
(Urgent Question)

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Jeff Smith and Robert Jenrick
Monday 3rd July 2023

(1 year, 5 months ago)

Commons Chamber
Read Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Jeff Smith Portrait Jeff Smith (Manchester, Withington) (Lab)
- Hansard - -

15. What recent progress her Department has made on reducing the use of hotels as contingency asylum accommodation.

Robert Jenrick Portrait The Minister for Immigration (Robert Jenrick)
- View Speech - Hansard - - - Excerpts

The Home Office seeks to end the use of hotels and to move asylum seekers to less expensive, more suitable accommodation. To support that, we are bringing into use large, disused military sites and vessels, which will provide adequate, safe, secure, non-detained accommodation for asylum seekers and also reduce the pull factor to the United Kingdom.

--- Later in debate ---
Robert Jenrick Portrait Robert Jenrick
- View Speech - Hansard - - - Excerpts

The policy that we have adopted is one of maximising the capacity of the hotels that we have for as long as we have them. That is saving the taxpayer at least a quarter of a billion pounds and reducing reliance on hotels elsewhere in the country. I do appreciate that there are pressures on the hon. Lady’s local authority, and I also appreciate that some Labour local authorities, such as Westminster City Council, say that asylum seekers must be housed in individual, ensuite bedrooms. We do not agree with that: it is a gross waste of taxpayers’ money that would make the UK a soft touch.

Jeff Smith Portrait Jeff Smith
- View Speech - Hansard - -

In my constituency, I have had the same experience as my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Mrs Hamilton), but the question I want to ask is about unaccompanied asylum-seeking children. The Home Office still has not explained how it is going to find the children missing from asylum accommodation, so will it set out the plans to do that and find these vulnerable people?

Robert Jenrick Portrait Robert Jenrick
- View Speech - Hansard - - - Excerpts

We have been very clear that we and the police take extremely seriously any young person who goes missing from a hotel or any other form of accommodation. Local police forces and Home Office personnel treat that exactly as they would any other child going missing and they conduct a full missing person inquiry. However, the only sustainable answer to young people living in hotels is to stop the boats in the first place. Doing nothing is not an option. Doing nothing will lead to more young people living in those hotels and being exposed to human traffickers.

Student Visas

Debate between Jeff Smith and Robert Jenrick
Wednesday 24th May 2023

(1 year, 6 months ago)

Commons Chamber
Read Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts

Urgent Questions are proposed each morning by backbench MPs, and up to two may be selected each day by the Speaker. Chosen Urgent Questions are announced 30 minutes before Parliament sits each day.

Each Urgent Question requires a Government Minister to give a response on the debate topic.

This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record

Robert Jenrick Portrait Robert Jenrick
- View Speech - Hansard - - - Excerpts

If the hon. Lady is referring to pressure on school places, that would be a good argument for reducing the number of dependants coming to the UK, because the children of the students will be using primary schools in her constituency.

Jeff Smith Portrait Jeff Smith (Manchester, Withington) (Lab)
- View Speech - Hansard - -

The Minister still has not said what economic impact assessment the Government have carried out on this policy. Will he publish one?

Robert Jenrick Portrait Robert Jenrick
- View Speech - Hansard - - - Excerpts

I said that we take a pragmatic approach to this issue. We are balancing our strong desire to bring down net migration with the needs of the economy. That is why we have taken the approach of standing behind the 600,000 target for international students, but making this important tweak to ensure that it is not abused.