Asked by: Lord Stevenson of Balmacara (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to introduce legislation relating to cybersecurity practices and offences.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Government keeps the UK’s cyber legislation under regular review to ensure that it can be used to tackle new and emerging threats. The UK’s regulatory framework for cyber resilience is a mixture of: sector-based regulation such the Network and Information Systems (NIS) Regulations 2018; thematic regulation such as the Data Protection Act 2018; and criminal legislation such as the Computer Misuse Act 1990.
The Government has undertaken several amendments to legislation to ensure it keeps pace with the evolving cyber threat, including updating the Computer Misuse Act in 2015 and updating the Network and Information Systems Regulations (2018) in 2020.
In 2022 the Government published proposals to make changes to the Network and Information Systems Regulations and these will be implemented as soon as Parliamentary time allows. The government has also carried out a review of the Computer Misuse Act and is currently considering whether to bring forward legislative proposals.
Asked by: Lord Stevenson of Balmacara (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what contribution they are making to international efforts to (1) identify, (2) and counter, cybercriminal gangs who target networks and users in the UK.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The UK is a world leader in cyber security. Our operational agencies, such as the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and National Crime Agency (NCA) are a source of international best practice, and we strongly support international cooperation to tackle cyber crime. The Government’s approach to countering this threat is set out in the National Cyber Strategy (2022), under the pillar of detecting, disrupting and deterring our adversaries.
Cyber-crime is a global threat. Criminals and the technical infrastructure they use are often based in uncooperative jurisdictions, making international collaboration essential. Across our law enforcement network, we seek to maximise international links as part of our response to criminal activity. Alongside working closely with UK police and regional organised crime units, the NCA have built crucial relationships with partners such as Europol, the FBI, and the US Secret Service to assess cyber crime risks, share intelligence and coordinate action.
The NCA works to identify cyber criminals impacting the UK, wherever they are in the world. Working with international partners to target and disrupt cyber criminal gangs and the illicit cyber crime ecosystem that supports them. For example, in February 2023, we announced sanctions against seven Russian cyber criminals involved in the notorious organised crime group behind many of the most damaging ransomware groups in the last few years involving TRICKBOT, CONTI and RYUK ransomware. A second wave of sanctions was announced in September demonstrating the NCA’s unrelenting targeting of cyber-criminals.
The UK continues to shape the global conversation at multilateral forums and bilaterally to drive cooperation to deter malicious cyber activity. We have promoted the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime since it was agreed in 2001, and we are taking an active role in the development of the proposed UN treaty on cybercrime, to ensure that it supports international cooperation on tackling crimes that all countries face, while protecting human rights.
Asked by: Lord Stevenson of Balmacara (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the impact of COVID-19 on live music events, what plans they have to consult with music industry representatives on how that sector can be supported through amendments to the Immigration Rules.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Government continues to engage with the creative sector to ensure the future immigration system will enable the UK’s cultural life to continue to thrive.
Currently, visiting artists, entertainers and musicians can perform at events, take part in competitions and auditions, make personal appearances and take part in promotional activities for up to 6 months without the need for formal sponsorship or a work visa.
Artists wishing to come to the UK for longer-term work will need to do so under the future points-based system. There will continue to be special arrangements for creative workers, which in future will encompass both EEA and non-EEA citizens.
Asked by: Lord Stevenson of Balmacara (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the commercial and cultural cases for facilitating continued ease of movement for musicians between the UK and EU; and what steps they are taking to ensure that this is reflected in the Immigration Rules.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
The Government continues to engage with the creative sector to ensure the future immigration system will enable the UK’s cultural life to continue to thrive.
Currently, visiting artists, entertainers and musicians can perform at events, take part in competitions and auditions, make personal appearances and take part in promotional activities for up to 6 months without the need for formal sponsorship or a work visa.
Artists wishing to come to the UK for longer-term work will need to do so under the future points-based system. There will continue to be special arrangements for creative workers, which in future will encompass both EEA and non-EEA citizens.
Asked by: Lord Stevenson of Balmacara (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to introduce (1) passport checking, and (2) body searches, at UK ports for nationals of Common Travel Area countries; and whether the introduction of such changes would require new legislation.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
All passengers, including British and Irish nationals, on scheduled services into UK ports from outside of the Common Travel Area (CTA) are subject to checks on arrival. British and Irish nationals arriving in the UK from within the CTA do not pass through immigration controls, though may be included in intelligence-led border security checks. This is in line with the existing CTA arrangements between the UK, Ireland and the Crown Dependencies and the UK’s legal framework as set out in the Immigration Act 1971. The Government has been clear that it intends to maintain the CTA. The introduction of routine immigration controls would require legislative change.
Asked by: Lord Stevenson of Balmacara (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will provide an analysis of the main funding sources for those arrested in the UK for alleged terrorist activities as categorised in the 2015 <i>European Union Terrorism Situation and Trend Report</i>.
Answered by Lord Bates
We are unable to provide analysis for the arrests included in this report as the information is not centrally recorded in this way, and many of these investigations will be ongoing. However, the UK National Risk Assessment of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing, released in October 2015, provides our assessment of the methods used to raise funds for terrorism in the UK, drawing on operational experience.
Asked by: Lord Stevenson of Balmacara (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in (1) the period from 1 January to 30 June 2015, (2) 2014, and (3) 2013, how many credibility interviews of potential international students were undertaken by UK Visas and Immigration; in which countries those credibility interviews took place; and what percentage of students who had been issued with a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies and were subject to a credibility interview were refused a visa to study in the United Kingdom.
Answered by Lord Bates
The number of point of application credibility interviews of Tier 4 applicants conducted by UK Visas and Immigration during the time periods requested can be found in the table below. All of these interviews were conducted via video conference by staff based in the UK.
We are unable to provide information on the percentage of students issued with a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies; interviewed and subsequently refused Entry Clearance. We do not hold this data in a format which would allow us to answer the question, and have estimated that to obtain the necessary information would incur disproportionate cost.
We are able to provide the overall refusal rates for student applications for the time periods requested.
Number of Tier 4 credibility interviews conducted* | |
Period | Interviews |
Apr-13 to Dec-13 | 102,635 |
Jan-14 to Dec-14 | 125,580 |
Jan-15 to Jun-15 | 17,330 |
*Data is taken from unpublished management Information and is therefore subject to change.
Overall refusal rates for Tier 4 applications | |
Quarter | Refusal rate |
Q2 2013 | 8% |
Q3 2013 | 5% |
Q4 2013 | 13% |
Q1 2014 | 15% |
Q2 2014 | 7% |
Q3 2014 | 5% |
Q4 2014 | 11% |
Q1 2015 | 14% |
Q2 2015 | 5% |
Asked by: Lord Stevenson of Balmacara (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will list, for each of the last four calendar years, (1) each accredited United Kingdom higher education institution's visa refusal rate; (2) the number of students initially sponsored by each institution under Tier 4 who later went on to claim asylum in the United Kingdom; and (3) the number of students initially sponsored by each institution under Tier 4 who were later subject to enforcement action.
Answered by Lord Bates
We do not hold the data in a format which would allow us to answer the questions and we have estimated that to obtain the necessary information would incur disproportionate cost.