Rochdale Grooming Gang: Offender Deportation
Debate between Neil Shastri-Hurst and Alex Norris(3 weeks, 5 days ago)
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Alex Norris
I appreciate that my hon. Friend, and indeed all hon. colleagues, are keen for a defined timeline. What matters and is hugely important in this case is that, whatever option is taken forward, it resolves the situation and it sticks. It is right, therefore, that we take the time to get it right—but, as I say, we are working at pace, because we totally understand the seriousness of this case.
Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst (Solihull West and Shirley) (Con)
I have a great deal of respect for the Minister, and he has adopted the tone of the House, which is united on tackling this issue; but there is clearly a lacuna in the law as it stands. It will take time, however fast the Government work, to get that change on the statute books. In the interim, is the Minister prepared to use sanctions against Pakistan to ensure the deportation of this grievous individual?
Alex Norris
It is important to say that in this case, the barrier to removal—the initial and currently unmoved barrier to removal—is section 7 of the 1971 Act. That has to be resolved, so I would not run to the second part of that question. Our returns agreement with Pakistan last year returned 1,300 people who had no right to be here, including sex offenders. We want to work closely with the Government of Pakistan to remove people with no right to be here, and that is what we are doing.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Neil Shastri-Hurst and Alex Norris(5 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Dr Neil Shastri-Hurst (Solihull West and Shirley) (Con)
The Minister for Border Security and Asylum (Alex Norris)
We were elected on a commitment to close all asylum hotels, and that is what we will do. In June 2024, there were 29,561 asylum seekers in hotels, which later peaked at 38,054 in the following December, thanks to the awful legacy of the Conservatives. As we started to grip the crisis in asylum accommodation, those numbers had reduced to 36,273 by September 2025. The next release of statistics is coming at the end of this month, and I have absolutely no doubt that the number will have fallen significantly even further.
Dr Shastri-Hurst
A number of my constituents have written to me requesting details on the future of the George hotel, which is one of the asylum hotels in Solihull town centre. Given the statistics that the Minister has just provided, can he provide some clarity to my constituents on when the George hotel will close?
Alex Norris
I have seen previous contributions that the hon. Gentleman has made; I know that it is exceptionally important to his community that that hotel is closed, and it will be. I will not give a running commentary in the Chamber on when each individual asylum hotel will be closed, but my message to Solihull—and to any community that has an asylum hotel—is that these hotels were opened by the Conservatives, and they will be closed by Labour.