Mike Tapp
Main Page: Mike Tapp (Labour - Dover and Deal)Department Debates - View all Mike Tapp's debates with the Home Office
(4 days, 2 hours ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Laura Kyrke-Smith (Aylesbury) (Lab)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mike Tapp)
Our immigration system must operate in a way that attracts the best and the brightest. Earned settlement will reward those who integrate and contribute to this country, with shorter pathways for higher earners and those in public service roles among others. We are carefully considering responses to our public consultation before setting out the next steps.
Laura Kyrke-Smith
Last month I joined a very generous community event at Herali, a much-loved Sri Lankan restaurant in Aylesbury, which is dependent on staff who are here on skilled worker visas. The proposed changes to ILR put many of my local residents, including Sri Lankans and Indians, in a very uncertain and difficult position. When they arrived, the clear path to settlement was five years, but now they do not know what to plan or hope for. That is equally difficult for their employers, whether in the care sector, nurseries or hospitality businesses such as Herali. Will the Minister tell me what reassurance I can offer to these skilled legal migrants, who are such an important part of our communities?
Mike Tapp
That sounds like a fantastic restaurant. As the Home Secretary has already laid out, there are around 1 million young people currently out of education, employment or training. We are creating a system that is firm, protects the economy, protects welfare from rising further and avoids more pressure on our social housing demands, and also fair, so that it encourages and rewards genuine economic contribution and integration. We have consulted and had 200,000 responses, and we are working on a final solution, which will be announced in due course.
Ben Obese-Jecty (Huntingdon) (Con)
Last week, the Government voted against my amendment to the Armed Forces Bill, new clause 5, which would have waived visa fees for the spouses and children of armed forces personnel and veterans. That was, of course, a Labour manifesto pledge—as it was a Conservative manifesto pledge— to ensure that the families of those who have fought to defend this country are allowed to reside here without being charged £3,229 per person just to remain in the country following service. I understand that the reason the policy has not been pursued is a Home Office issue, rather than a Defence issue, so will the Minister explain why it has not been progressed in two years? Could he give an update on whether the policy will be amended when the changes come out later this year?
Mike Tapp
I thank the hon. Member for his question—as a veteran, it is an important question, and I respect it. I am working with colleagues in the Ministry of Defence at the moment to deliver that important manifesto commitment.
Martin Wrigley (Newton Abbot) (LD)
Jack Rankin (Windsor) (Con)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mike Tapp)
Living in this country permanently is a privilege, one that should be earned, not granted by default. We are currently analysing 200,000 consultation responses, and we expect to introduce major reforms in the autumn.
Jack Rankin
In January 2025, I urged the Government to act on indefinite leave to remain, to prevent the fiscal calamity of locking in the Boriswave. I thank the Ministers for their movement in that regard. It is important that we are transparent with the public about who is using visas as a route to a life on benefits, so can the Minister provide an estimate of the number and proportion of individuals holding ILR who are currently in receipt of universal credit?
Mike Tapp
As of January 2026, 222,000 people with ILR were actively claiming universal credit.
Jo Platt (Leigh and Atherton) (Lab/Co-op)
John Lamont (Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk) (Con)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mike Tapp)
Under the previous Government, we saw 2.5 million people arrive in just four years—that is one in 30 people in the country at this time. This Government have brought migration down by 82% since its peak and by 41% in the past year.
Catherine Fookes (Monmouthshire) (Lab)
I welcome my hon. Friend the Minister to her place. Surviving Economic Abuse estimates that around 750,000 women are trapped in a joint mortgage with an abusive partner or ex-partner, with the only way out often being to let their home be repossessed, as abusers refuse to contribute their share of repayments or prevent the sale of the property. I welcome the fact that the Government want to explore solutions, including what could be done through the Financial Services and Markets Bill, but what steps will the Government take to stop joint mortgage abuse as part of their wider commitment to halving violence against women and girls?
Perran Moon (Camborne and Redruth) (Lab)
The horticultural sector in Cornwall is worth about £100 million a year, but it is reliant on the seasonal worker scheme. The scheme numbers are announced annually at the end of the year, but the daffodil season in Cornwall begins in January. Will Ministers meet me to discuss an earlier announcement and a two-year rolling scheme?
Mike Tapp
It is important that we continue our strategy to bring net migration down while also maintaining agricultural industries. I have met a number of people across the sector and of course I am happy to meet my hon. Friend after questions.
Sir Roger Gale (Herne Bay and Sandwich) (Con)
Further to the answer given to the hon. Member for Lichfield (Dave Robertson) earlier, Mohamed Fayed is beyond the reach of terrestrial justice, but many of the ladies he abused are still waiting for justice. The Metropolitan police has been conducting an inquiry into the activities of those who aided and abetted Fayed for many months. Will the Home Office ask the Met to expedite the inquiry so that those ladies can at last have justice?