Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Israeli legislation in relation to UNRWA on (a) his Department’s policies and (b) the provision of UK aid to the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have expressed serious concern at the UNRWA bills that Israel's Knesset has now passed. This legislation risks making UNRWA's essential work for Palestinians impossible, jeopardising the entire international humanitarian response in Gaza and delivery of essential health and education services in the West Bank. The UK and six allies issued a joint statement on 27 October expressing our grave concern and urging Israel to ensure UNRWA can continue its lifesaving work. The Foreign Secretary reiterated this to Israel's Foreign Minister Katz on 27 October. We will continue working with our international partners and through the UN to press Israel to ensure that UNRWA can continue its vital operations.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the acceptance rate for Adult Dependent Relative visa applications was in each of the last five years.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Home Office publishes data on Family visas in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on visa applications are published in table ‘Vis_D01’ whilst data on the outcomes of visa applications are published in table ‘Vis_D02’ of the detailed entry clearance visas dataset. Further information on how to use the dataset can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbook. The latest data relates up to the end of June 2024.

Notes

1. Adult dependant relative visas are a subset of the ‘Family: Other (for immediate settlement)’ visa type subgroup.

2. An application submitted may receive an outcome in a different quarter.
3. To calculate the grant rate, we recommend taking the number of grants and divide by the total outcomes (grants, refusals, withdrawals, and lapsed) in a specified period.

Information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘Research and statistics calendar’.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for an Adult Dependent Relative visa there were in each of the last five years.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

The Home Office publishes data on Family visas in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on visa applications are published in table ‘Vis_D01’ whilst data on the outcomes of visa applications are published in table ‘Vis_D02’ of the detailed entry clearance visas dataset. Further information on how to use the dataset can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbook. The latest data relates up to the end of June 2024.

Notes

1. Adult dependant relative visas are a subset of the ‘Family: Other (for immediate settlement)’ visa type subgroup.

2. An application submitted may receive an outcome in a different quarter.
3. To calculate the grant rate, we recommend taking the number of grants and divide by the total outcomes (grants, refusals, withdrawals, and lapsed) in a specified period.

Information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘Research and statistics calendar’.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps he is taking to support a cessation of military action in the north of Gaza.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Foreign Secretary spoke to his Israeli counterpart most recently on 27 October, and reiterated that Israel must do much more to bring about an end to hostilities and get aid into Gaza. A political resolution has been a priority of this Government since day one. We have continued to use all diplomatic avenues to push for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages, the upholding of international humanitarian law, protection of civilians including a rapid increase of aid into Gaza, respect for the UN mandate in Gaza, greater stability across the West Bank and a pathway to a two-state solution. We welcome news of the resumption of hostage talks in Doha, and we support the efforts of the US, Egyptian and Qatari negotiators.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average processing time is for a Skilled Worker visa.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

Data on performance against service standards is published through migration transparency data and can be found at: Migration transparency data - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

The Home Office also publishes information on visa processing times for applications inside and outside the UK at: Visa processing times - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

The Home Office makes every attempt to meet the service level agreement standard, but in certain cases additional checks are required which can mean visa requests take longer to process.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average decision-making time for an Adult Dependent Relative visa application was in each of the last five years.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

Current processing times for Adult Dependent Relative applications applying for entry clearance to the UK are 12 weeks. Processing times for Adult Dependent Relative applications applying from within the UK are 8 weeks.

Further information on family visa processing times for applications made outside of the UK can be found here: Visa processing times: applications outside the UK - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Information on family visa processing times for applications made from within the UK can be found here: Visa processing times: applications inside the UK - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

NB: these links list Adult Dependant Relative applications as ‘Adult coming to be cared for by relative’.

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what proportion of F-35 components produced by UK companies are wear-sensitive parts.

Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

The F-35 inventory is owned by the US Department of Defence and is managed by Lockheed Martin Aeronautics and Pratt and Whitney. The details on the proportion of F35 components produced by UK companies are not known.

The F35 Programme does not classify components as wear-sensitive. Components are either "repairable" or "consumable".

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether UK components supplied to the F-35 programme are coded using the NATO codification system.

Answered by Maria Eagle - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)

F-35 Components are owned by the US Department of Defence and managed in a Global Spares Pool. The F-35 components within the Global Spares Pool are not subject to NATO Codification.