Asked by: Mike Tapp (Labour - Dover and Deal)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what was the maximum daily spend on hotel accommodation for asylum-seekers between July (a) 2021 and (b) 2024; and in which (i) month and (ii) year that maximum spend was reached.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office does not publish data on daily numbers or cost of hotels in use as costs are subject to change depending on numbers being accommodated within the asylum system. However, the total expenditure on asylum is published in the Home Office Annual Report and Accounts, available at Home Office annual reports and accounts - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: Mike Tapp (Labour - Dover and Deal)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has had discussions with her Turkish counterpart on a cooperation and security agreement; and whether she plans to hold such discussions before the end of the year.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office continues to work closely with a wide range of agencies and governments around the world to pursue our shared objectives to tackle organised immigration crime. However, I can advise the Honourable Member that media reports suggesting that the UK is intending to negotiate a cooperation and security agreement with the government of Turkey are wholly inaccurate and misleading, and do not reflect any of the discussions that Home Office ministers and officials have had with their Turkish counterparts in recent months. We look forward to continuing our warm, productive and equal partnership with the government of Turkey on a range of issues of mutual benefit to both countries, but the idea of an 'Italy-style deal' invented by media outlets has been and will remain no part of those discussions.
Asked by: Mike Tapp (Labour - Dover and Deal)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to help disrupt Iran’s support for (a) Hamas, (b) Hezbollah and (c) the Houthis.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary and Prime Minister made clear to their Iranian counterparts that Iran must cease its support for its proxies and partners during recent calls. We will continue to work alongside international partners to hold Iran to account for its escalatory behaviour through its support for its proxies and partners in the Middle East and its attempts to undermine global security. On 2 September, the UK imposed sanctions against four Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) -Quds Force targets who have a role in supporting Iranian proxy actions. Furthermore, the UK has proscribed Lebanese Hezbollah and Hamas. The IRGC and Houthis are sanctioned in their entirety.