Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to tackle child trafficking.
Answered by Sarah Dines
This Government is clear that targeting, grooming and the exploitation of children who are often the most vulnerable in our society is deplorable and is committed to tackling it. The Modern Slavery Act 2015 gives law enforcement agencies the tools to tackle modern slavery, including potential maximum sentences of life imprisonment for perpetrators and specific support and protection for victims, including children. £17.8 million of dedicated funding has been provided to the police since 2016, helping to improve the police’s ability to identify victims and to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators and we are investing up to £145 million over three years to tackle drugs supply and county lines activity. The Prevention Programme in England and Wales also delivers tailored interventions, based on police intelligence, to improve multi-agency collaboration in prevention of all exploitation types and help identify hot spot locations, priority areas and specific threats in each region.
The identification of a child who is a potential victim of modern slavery, or is at risk of being a victim, should always trigger the agreed local child protection procedures to ensure the child’s safety and welfare, and to enable the police to gather evidence about abusers and coercers. In addition to this statutory support, the Government has rolled out Independent Child Trafficking Guardians (ICTGs) who provide an additional source of advice and support for potentially trafficked children, irrespective of nationality, and is piloting their impact with sites covering two thirds of all local authorities across England and nationally in Wales.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she plans to take to facilitate family reunions for asylum seekers who are sent to Rwanda.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Everyone considered for relocation to Rwanda will be screened and have access to legal advice. Decisions will be taken on a case-by-case basis and nobody will be removed if it is unsafe for them.
We will thoroughly consider the circumstances of cases involving families with children according to our policy, statutory and international obligations. A full equality impact assessment has been published on gov.uk.
Individuals with family in the UK may still be relocated to Rwanda subject to a detailed consideration of their Article 8 rights under the European Convention on Human Rights.
For those with family links in the UK who want to be considered for entry to the UK, they should seek to do so via safe and legal routes.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure that refugees who have used safe and legal routes of entry are not inadvertently deported to Rwanda.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
As set out in the Home Office’s Inadmissibility guidance, an asylum claimant may be eligible for removal to Rwanda if their claim is inadmissible under this policy and (a) that claimant’s journey to the UK can be described as having been dangerous and (b) was made on or after 1 January 2022. A dangerous journey is one able or likely to cause harm or injury. This would therefore not include those who have arrived in the UK through safe and legal routes of entry.
A case-by-case assessment will take place for every individual considered for relocation. No one will be relocated if it is unsafe for them.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Court of Appeal's decision of 29 June 2023 on the UK’s migration and economic development partnership with Rwanda, whether she has taken recent steps to consider alternative options for housing people arriving in the UK who have crossed the English Channel in small boats.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
While we are disappointed with the Court of Appeal’s ruling in relation to deficiencies in Rwanda’s asylum system that risk returning people inappropriately when they have a need for protection, we have been granted permission to appeal this judgement to the Supreme Court.
We continue to bring forward alternative accommodation options to reduce hotel use. We are standing up alternative accommodation sites including the sites of Scampton and Wethersfield.
In addition, the government is also seeking to use vessels to provide accommodation in line with the approach taken by countries like the Netherlands.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Home Office:
SUGGESTED EDIT: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the rates of small boats crossing the Channel on the radicalisation of children.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
No specific assessment has been made of the potential impact of the rates of small boats crossing the Channel on the radicalisation of children. If someone is concerned that an individual is susceptible to radicalisation, they can make a referral to Prevent.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she is taking steps with Cabinet colleagues to help reunite family members who have come to the UK under the Afghan citizens resettlement scheme.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The government remains committed to providing protection for vulnerable and at-risk people fleeing Afghanistan. The situation is very complex and presents significant challenges, including how those who are eligible for resettlement in the UK can leave Afghanistan. This includes the eligible family members of those being resettled under the ACRS. For those evacuated from Afghanistan under the ACRS without their immediate family members, further information will be made available in due course about options for reuniting with them.
In line with our existing policy, those resettled under the ACRS may be able to be accompanied by their immediate family members (their spouse or partner, and dependent children under 18).
Those referred by UNHCR under the ACRS will have refugee status and will therefore be able to access the refugee family reunion route.
Those without refugee status wishing to bring family members would need to apply through the regular family visa route under Appendix FM of the Immigration Rules.
Whilst the UK has made a generous resettlement commitment, we must bear in mind the capacity of the UK to resettle people is not unlimited and therefore difficult decisions about who will be prioritised for resettlement have to be made.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle criminal smuggler gangs.
Answered by Sarah Dines
The Government is committed to tackling the ruthless criminal gangs who facilitate illegal immigration, risk lives and damage communities by smuggling people, firearms and drugs into the UK.
We are working to end small boat crossings and disrupt the organised crime groups behind this activity. Through Project INVIGOR, a multi-agency taskforce, the Home Office is leading efforts to tackle organised immigration crime and the National Crime Agency is responding to and dismantling the business model used by organised criminals to enable illegal entry into the UK.
We are strengthening the security of the UK border against drug trafficking, increasing disruptions and seizures and dismantling supply chains.
As part of the Government’s ten-year Drugs Strategy, the Home Office is investing £300m over three years to deliver an end-to-end plan attacking every phase of the supply chain, making the UK a significantly harder place for organised crime groups involved in drugs supply to operate.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if the Government will take steps to (a) increase the speed of DBS checks and (b) provide applicants with updates on the progress on their application for people who have previously completed those checks within the social care sector.
Answered by Sarah Dines
The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) operates to published service standards of completing 80% of Basic checks within 2 days, 80% of Standard checks within 14 days, and 80% of Enhanced checks within 14 days.
DBS’ year-to-date performance up to 31 October 2022 has been positive, providing 88% of Basic checks within 2 days, 95.2% of Standard checks within 14 days, and 79.5% of Enhanced checks within 14 days. These attainments apply to applications across all employment sectors, including the care sector. Furthermore, DBS is working closely with police forces to improve turnaround times for Enhanced checks.
In addition, DBS provides an Update Service which allows:
This service may reduce the need to apply for multiple certificates when individuals move from one job to another in the same workforce, or when a re-check is required, as employers can carry out a quick online status check to see if an individual’s certificate is still up-to-date. This service may be of significant benefit for individuals that work within the social care sector.
DBS also provides an ‘adult first check’ service to employing organisations in the care sector. Employers can request the result of a check of DBS’ list of barred adults, ahead of the completion of an Enhanced application. Depending on the result, a person can be permitted to start work with vulnerable adults, under supervision, before the result of an Enhanced DBS check.
Although DBS does not provide automatic progress updates during the processing of applications. However, it is possible for relevant parties to check on the progress of applications through DBS’ online tracking services.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Government is taking to help increase protections against online scams.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
Tackling fraud requires a unified and co-ordinated response from government, law enforcement and the private sector to better protect the public and businesses from fraud, reduce the impact of fraud on victims, and increase the disruption and prosecution of fraudsters. We will publish a strategy setting out how we will do this shortly.
Fraud has been brought into scope of the Online Safety Bill to make tech firms responsible for protecting their customers from fraud. DCMS is also leading work on the Online Advertising Programme, which is considering further regulation of online advertising and examining all harms related to online advertising, including fraud.
We are intending to launch a tech sector charter that will examine more ways Government and industry can collaborate and put in place further innovative solutions to protect the public from losing their hard-earned money.
Asked by: Julian Sturdy (Conservative - York Outer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government plans to loosen visa restrictions for seasonal temporary workers to tackle labour shortages.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Seasonal Worker route has been extended until 2024, with 40,000 visas available for 2022, consisting of 38,000 for horticulture and 2,000 for the poultry sector. The route has been extended to support our farmers growing fruit and vegetables as they adapt to changes in the UK labour market. The Government is keeping the position under close review.