Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a new public inquiry into the Windrush scandal.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
This government is determined to put right the appalling injustices caused by the Home Office’s treatment of members of the Windrush community, making sure that those affected receive the compensation they rightly deserve, and ensuring cultural change is embedded permanently into the fabric of the Home Office.
We have established a new Windrush Unit in the Home Office with a remit dedicated to driving systemic and cultural change across the whole organisation. The new Windrush Unit will be undertaking a review of the Home Office’s response to the Windrush Lessons Learned Review to assess how far the department has come and what more needs to be done.
We will be appointing a Windrush Commissioner to act as an independent advocate for all those affected. This independent advocate will ensure the voices of Windrush victims and communities are heard throughout government and will help ensure lasting change is delivered and lessons of the past are truly learned.
We believe that these measures will be the quickest and most effective way to learn lessons and ensure victims get the support they deserve.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure the safety of British Pakistanis speaking out about human rights violations in Pakistan.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government regularly assesses potential threats to the UK, and takes the protection of individuals' rights, freedoms, and safety in the UK very seriously.
As you would expect, Home Office officials work closely with the FCDO and MHCLG as well as other Government departments to ensure that the UK is a safe and welcoming place.
The Home Secretary regularly discusses issues regarding national security with her counterparts, including the Foreign Secretary.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to extend the flexible fund beyond February 2025.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government is committed to supporting victims of domestic abuse.
At the beginning of October, we launched a £1.96m investment into the Flexible Fund. The Flexible Fund, administered by Women’s Aid Federation of England, can be accessed through over 470 specialist domestic abuse services.
Following the spending review announcements in October, the Home Office is now deciding how the total funding settlement is allocated across the Department to deliver the Government’s priorities. Further announcements regarding funding, including on the Flexible Fund, will follow in due course.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to tackle the asylum case backlog.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
Mr Speaker, this government inherited an asylum system in crisis, with decision-making on cases at its lowest level for years, £8 million per day being spent on asylum hotels, and a £6 billion in-year overspend on asylum and illegal migration costs.
We have increased asylum decision-making, stepped up returns of failed asylum-seekers, and combined with the ending of the Rwanda partnership, committed in the Budget to reduce costs by £4 billion over the next two years. We cannot fix the system we inherited overnight, but we are working flat out towards that goal.