Debates between Layla Moran and Brandon Lewis during the 2017-2019 Parliament

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Layla Moran and Brandon Lewis
Monday 16th October 2017

(7 years, 2 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Brandon Lewis Portrait Brandon Lewis
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Negotiations are progressing well. We are clear that, as our offer outlines, when we leave the European Union we will ensure that European citizens in this country have the same rights as British citizens. I am just disappointed that the right hon. Lady is not as focused on the rights of British citizens, both here and abroad.

Layla Moran Portrait Layla Moran (Oxford West and Abingdon) (LD)
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3. Whether her Department is taking steps to broaden the criteria under which refugee family reunions are permitted.

Brandon Lewis Portrait The Minister for Immigration (Brandon Lewis)
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The family reunion policy allows immediate family members of those granted protection in the UK to reunite with them here. In addition, the family provisions in the immigration rules also provide for relatives with protection in the UK to sponsor children when there are serious and compelling circumstances. Our policy is clear: where an application fails under the rules, we consider whether there are exceptional reasons to grant leave outside the rules.

Layla Moran Portrait Layla Moran
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As the Minister will be aware, a lone child refugee is currently unable to sponsor even their parents or siblings to join them in safety here. UNICEF and the Refugee Council have both said that the rules are too restrictive, and the Home Affairs Committee has called the situation “perverse”. Will the Government therefore support the Refugees (Family Reunion) Bill, introduced in the other place by my colleague Baroness Hamwee, and allow these vulnerable children a chance to have the loving upbringing that every child surely deserves?

Brandon Lewis Portrait Brandon Lewis
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We are working with the UNHCR and with UNICEF on this issue, and we want to ensure that the application of these rules and this policy works in practice. I ask the hon. Lady to look again at the rules that I have outlined, because we can consider whether there are exceptional reasons to grant leave outside the rules.