Global Migration Challenge

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Tuesday 19th April 2022 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

I thank my hon. Friend for his support and his comments. As I said earlier, I think the Opposition should just be honest about their position. They clearly stand for open borders; they do not believe in controlled immigration. We have a points-based immigration system that provides legal routes for people to come to the United Kingdom. They do not want the differentiation between legal and illegal routes, but I will tell you who does, Madam Deputy Speaker—the British people.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

When somebody is trafficked or smuggled into the UK, and then determines that they do not want to be deported to Rwanda, what steps will she take to uphold their rights under the Refugee Convention?

[Priti Patel]

As I said earlier, there is a difference between trafficking cases and those who have been smuggled through the people smuggling routes. When it comes to cases of trafficking, we have all the legal bases to provide support and to go after the traffickers for the abuses that they have committed. The hon. Lady will be very familiar with all of that. Not only that, I say again that every case is determined case by case. That means the right kind of legal support, both in this country and in Rwanda.

Ukrainian Refugees

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Monday 14th March 2022 Westminster Hall

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair this afternoon, Mr Dowd. I thank every single petitioner for using their power to act on this matter, and I thank people across our nation who have stood with refugees over these last few days, as millions of people have crossed borders and millions more have been internally displaced—no doubt soon to cross themselves into an unknown future.

Until 17 days after this most brutal of conflicts commenced, the UK showed no recognition of this reality nor of its responsibility, legal or moral, to give proper sanctuary. The powerful testimony of families welcoming complete strangers from across Europe to form new families has shamed this Government. These families asked for no checks, and they asked no questions. They have just shown compassion.

The hostile dogma of the Home Office says that women, children and old people fleeing war and terror must first collect a visa, as if going on holiday, or should opt to pick vegetables from our fields to enter the UK. What a disgrace. They face more risk themselves than they pose any risk to anyone else. While the U-turn was welcome on Thursday, the impact will be minimal, as family members will stick together until all have the required the documentation that the UK, unlike other countries, demands.

As with all passengers, and as goes for any of us, border security checks will screen for immediate safety. Once people arrive in the UK, with their whole lives packed into a single bag, families should then receive any emergency protection visa or documentation and the warmest of welcomes at our ports, airports or Eurostar. There is no need to process visas in centres across Europe. That can happen on arrival here and with no added so-called risk. A friend of a constituent sought to get a visa. They went and made inquiries and were told they should go to a place called Kyiv. For the Minister’s information, Kyiv is in the middle of a war zone. That shows the shambolic mess operating in the Home Office.

At the same time, support should be given to people for all of their travel. They should get free travel through Europe and across the UK as they arrive and are placed with families. The Home Secretary seems to have confused and conflated security with sanctuary, and she has displayed her prejudice. Other nations have put our Government to shame. I was glad to see some movement over the weekend. To home a refugee and their family would be a privilege. While safeguarding is important, bureaucratic hoops must be removed, because it is what people across my constituency want and it is what I want.

We heard today about the Homes for Ukraine scheme, but it raises more questions than it answers. What happens after six months? What happens if a placement breaks down? Who will then safeguard the interests of that family? What about school places? What about access to our NHS? What about access to mental health services? They are already under immense pressure and yet specialist trauma services will be required. How are families matched? It seems that refugees somehow have to advertise that they are in need of a home and somehow families offering their homes have to find that match. Processes need to be in place and systems need to be adopted. I believe that today’s statement only asked questions, but we desperately need answers, and we need those answers now.

The same should be true for the thousands of Afghan refugees who have been imprisoned in bridging hotels for the last seven months. They must not be forgotten, as they too have fled terror, and as they are locked away, their mental health is deteriorating and they are feeling abandoned by this Government. We need Homes for Afghans, too, and homes for all who flee. We must be generous as a country, as our constituents are demanding. This Government have too often been on the wrong side of history and the wrong side of humanity. Let not perfection be the enemy of good. If homes are checked and safeguarding is agreed, let people come to our constituencies and the homes of our constituents, and to where there is spare capacity in other buildings. I keep raising the issue of the 7,230 empty homes leased by Annington Homes to the Ministry of Defence; let them be occupied. In York, let the empty care homes be converted and empty hospitals be transition points. All must play their part. No more excuses. I trust that from this point, all our actions will restore our nation’s reputation as a place of sanctuary for all.

--- Later in debate ---

[Kevin Foster]

We look forward to that area signing up to be a dispersal area as well then. I will be very pleased to take that forward.

Using a visa process means that processing can be controlled and vital security checks carried out, including ensuring that the people coming are actually Ukrainian, meet our eligibility criteria and do not present a risk.

[Rachael Maskell]

Will the Minister give way?

[Kevin Foster]

I have given way quite a lot; I need to make some progress.

We have announced our bespoke Ukraine family scheme. That scheme significantly expands the ability of British nationals, people settled in the UK and others to bring family members to the UK, extending eligibility to adult parents, grandparents, children over 18, siblings, aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, cousins and in-laws, and all of their immediate family members. We have ensured that the scheme is easily accessible, fee-free and does not include any salary or language requirements.

We recognise though—again, as has been said today—that we need to speed things up. Therefore, as announced by the Home Secretary last week, in order to further support the Ukrainian people, from tomorrow, holders of Ukrainian passports who are outside the UK will no longer be required to provide their biometric information when making applications under the Ukraine family scheme. Once applications have been processed, individuals will receive a permission letter sent electronically enabling them to travel to the UK, and will not be required to collect a vignette in their passport. They can either print that letter or show it on any smart device, including a family member’s smartphone or device if they do not have one of their own. Those granted status under this scheme will be able to come to the UK for three years, with the right to work and access benefits. Applicants who hold identity cards and do not have a valid passport will still need to attend a visa application centre in person and provide their biometric information, but this new system will mean that our VAC capacity can focus on those who need it.

The Prime Minister has also announced plans for a scheme to introduce a new sponsor group to enable Ukrainians with no ties to the UK to come here, with more details having been announced in the main Chamber this afternoon. That scheme is completely uncapped, and to help colleagues, a “frequently asked questions” section has just gone live on gov.uk.

[Rachael Maskell]

I am grateful to the Minister for giving way. Could he say how long it will take for a family with no family connection in the UK coming through the Homes for Ukraine scheme to be placed with a family here? [Interruption.]

[James Gray (in the Chair)]

Order. There is a Division in the main Chamber, and I therefore suspend the sitting for 15 minutes. We will recommence at 7.22 pm.

Refugees from Ukraine

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Thursday 10th March 2022 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. As I said in my statement, our No. 1 priority is to keep our country safe, while streamlining processes where we can. We will continue to do so; we will not stop here. My final point is that situations can change, and with that, threat assessments can change as well. Obviously, I will keep colleagues updated on that.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

The Home Secretary has been on the wrong side of history and the wrong side of humanity. We are talking about women, children and older people. My constituent’s friend has just crossed the border into Poland, and when she went to get her visa she was told to go back to a city called Kyiv, in the middle of a war zone. There is still chaos at the borders—the Home Secretary shakes her head, but she was told that. There is chaos at the borders, so why can people not come visa free to the UK border to collect their documentation and then get the warm welcome that the Home Secretary talks about?

[Priti Patel]

I refer the hon. Lady to the statement I made earlier. I cannot comment on the anecdotal evidence that she has given, but bearing in mind that Kyiv is obviously under siege, it is thoroughly inappropriate if anybody made that comment.

Ukraine

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Tuesday 1st March 2022 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

Yes, of course. I will need to see the case, as well, because the hon. Lady is raising it for the first time. I will pick that up.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

When it comes to resettlement housing, perfection can sometimes be the enemy of the good. The Ministry of Defence leases 7,230 homes from Annington Homes, and they are unoccupied. We know that there are unoccupied local authority homes and other public estate, as well as short-term holiday lets and other accommodation. Indeed, people want to open their own homes. Will the Home Secretary ensure that she is maximising the use of all the estate across the country, so that people are not languishing for months in hotels, but are placed in communities where they can start to rebuild their lives?

[Priti Patel]

The hon. Lady has just made the case that I constantly make across Departments when it comes to accommodation. We do not want people in hotels. There is estate and Government land. There are also private sector options, so we can unite and work together on this.

English Channel Small Boats Incident

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Thursday 25th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

My hon. right Friend is absolutely right, hence the discussions that took place between the Prime Minister and President Macron last night. We have been assiduous and forthright in making these points to our counterparts in France over the past two years. Members have heard about the offers that we presented to President Macron, the Interior Minister and the whole machinery of the French Government. We urge them to take up those offers. They may not be perfect, but that is not the point. We need to deploy every single tool that we have to save lives and to prevent the loss of life, and that is effectively what this is now about.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

This is absolutely tragic: 27 people, including children and a pregnant woman, desperate for a safe future, were killed while being exploited. It is nothing short of murder.

Two years ago, the Foreign Affairs Committee concluded that closing down safe routes drives people into the hands of people smugglers. Will the Home Secretary immediately withdraw her dangerous Nationality and Borders Bill, which does just that, and put in place safe routes of passage to avoid more tragedies?

[Priti Patel]

The answer is no, because the Nationality and Borders Bill does create safe and legal routes.

Oral Answers to Questions

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Monday 22nd November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

This is an important area in developing global talent and making sure that we, as a country, are attractive and can become the science superpower that we aspire to be. The chief scientific officer has indeed been leading this work with the Home Office and with the Treasury. In response to my right hon. Friend’s question, I can say that there is a great deal of work taking place, that these routes are open and that he will hear a lot more about the applications and the numbers that are coming through, but I can assure the House that the Home Office and this Government are absolutely dedicated to making sure that we get the brightest and the best over to our country through this new route.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

3. What steps she has taken to support local partnerships to help prevent violence against women and girls.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Rachel Maclean)]

Our strategy is a whole-system approach, with different local agencies—for example, the police, healthcare and social care—working together to ensure more effective interventions. To that end, we have put in place guidance, training and online resources for the police and healthcare and educational professionals, and we will shortly be refreshing our national statement of expectations to support local areas in commissioning services.

[Rachael Maskell]

The unacceptable and continued prevalence of misogyny and violence against women and girls highlights the need for multi-agency partnerships, but the funding is woeful, yet the challenge is great. Will the Minister ensure that the police, who are ever focused on crime detection rather than crime prevention because of the lack of resources, have the resources at hand to build the multi-agency partnerships that are vital to change the culture?

[Rachel Maclean]

I reject what the hon. Lady says about funding and resources. In her area, the police are receiving their fair share of the 20,000 additional police officers we have pledged to hire. She will already see 114 additional officers in her area, and the police are receiving up to £171.7 million of funding—an increase of £5.5 million—so I suggest that she talks to her local police and crime commissioners and ensures that they are prioritising that funding in the right way.

Nightclub Safety

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Monday 8th November 2021 Westminster Hall

[Tonia Antoniazzi]

I thank my hon. Friend for his comments. It is really shocking to find out that school students in his constituency were raising this issue with him before it even came to the public eye. That shows that they know about it through social media platforms and have an understanding of this danger. I am concerned that this is happening not only in nightclubs, but in the wider community, in house parties. It is becoming a craze and a trend. It has to be taken seriously by everybody. That is why education is key. We have issues in this country around access. More young people are online now and they have access to all sorts of very dangerous pornography and materials. That needs to be addressed as a cultural issue.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Tomorrow, North Yorkshire police will have a multi-agency meeting, including with universities and higher education institutions, to discuss the issue of spiking. Does my hon. Friend agree that we need to talk about the availability of trauma services, which are seriously underfunded and understaffed?

[Tonia Antoniazzi]

I thank my hon. Friend for her comments about trauma services. As we have seen, those services are needed 24/7 at universities. They are needed at police stations. They are needed everywhere and the issue needs to be addressed.

We cannot go on like this. Radical action needs to be taken. Misogyny should be a hate crime. Support for women facing domestic abuse needs to be restored. Education for boys and men needs to be put in place. This is a specific debate, but it speaks to a much wider issue—one which needs action, not words, today.

--- Later in debate ---

[Jess Phillips]

Every single constituency Member of Parliament who has ever tried to get any sort of road safety measure in and has been told that they have to wait until somebody dies on that street hears the call of the hon. Member for Bath. I am afraid to say that a woman is murdered every three days in the UK by violence against women and girls; if that was happening at football matches in our country, football matches would be banned. The reality is that even if somebody does die in these circumstances, I do not think that will be what suddenly changes things. I want to hear from the Minister what exactly the Government will do to make it so that women can feel safe, and that perpetrators are the ones who are scared?

[Rachael Maskell]

The reality is that this is all about an assault against a woman, and somebody invading her space. That is the issue that needs to be addressed. We know there is massive underreporting of violence against women; whatever the statistics are, the reality is probably far greater. It is about bringing about action now, whether there is one case or several thousand cases.

Salisbury Incident 2018: Update

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Tuesday 21st September 2021 Commons Chamber

[Priti Patel]

If I may, I refer the hon. Lady to my earlier comments on that. Work is taking place across Government—not just from a Home Office perspective but involving the FCDO, too—and much of it involves our national security apparatus. There will in due course be an update on the report and its recommendations. I ask the hon. Lady and all colleagues in the House to persevere and we will obviously come back in due course.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Today is a sober reminder of the scale of the security threats that we face as a country. I thank the Home Secretary for her statement. While we reflect on the terrible events in Salisbury three years ago, it is right to remind ourselves of the cyber-threats that the country faces. Will the Home Secretary say a little more about the work her Department is doing to deter the investment that countries such as Russia are putting into breaking our cyber-security?

[Priti Patel]

The hon. Lady is absolutely right, as have been many other right hon. and hon. Members, to touch on the cyber-security threat to our country. Of course, cyber-threats manifest themselves in many forms and guises, from attacks on key and critical national infrastructure right down through attacks on local government, financial institutions and retail outlets. Extensive work takes place across the entire UK intelligence community. The National Cyber Security Centre is led by incredible individuals with whom we have the privilege to work on a daily basis, and there is work across the Cabinet Office as well. Extensive work is taking place in the cyber space, and not just Russia but other countries are involved in the cyber-threat. When it comes to cyber, all Members have a responsibility to ensure that we take all the necessary measures and steps, and our local authorities and the organisations that we come across on a daily basis should also make sure that they are doing everything to enhance their cyber-security.

Afghanistan Policy

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Monday 13th September 2021 Commons Chamber

[Victoria Atkins]

The hon. Gentleman describes an incredibly difficult case. If Mr Kamal’s family are in Afghanistan, I cannot give him a specific update on their safety and whereabouts, but I am happy to discuss the case with him after the statement because I want to see if we can do anything more.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

My constituents are children here under the vulnerable children’s resettlement scheme, and their families—Hazara families—in Kabul want to know what steps they need to take to make applications and whether they will fall under the Afghan citizens’ resettlement scheme, not least because the numbers under that scheme are so pitiful. The Minister talks about 5,000 people, which is one or two families per constituency. We really need to re-examine those numbers.

[Victoria Atkins]

I very much hope that the hon. Member is encouraging her local authority to volunteer permanent properties to help resettle families as she has described. On her specific case, if I have understood her correctly, she is talking about children, and she will know that children cannot sponsor adults to come to the United Kingdom under our wider asylum policy because of real concerns that children would be used by people with ill intent. However, if there are asylum matters in particular, the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, my hon. Friend the Member for Torbay (Kevin Foster), stands ready to help in that application, if he can.

Nationality and Borders Bill

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

2nd reading
Monday 19th July 2021 Commons Chamber

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op) [V]]

Judged while seeking justice. Criminalised while fleeing criminals. Expelled while being exploited. Scapegoated while escaping some of the worst violations against human dignity or human rights. In breach of global agreements. The words in the Bill should never enter the minds of anyone, let alone those entrusted to protect us. They should never be echoed in the Chamber, let alone be brought forward in legislation. In our country—the place that founded human rights—the Government have reached the depths of stigmatising people fleeing war, terror, trafficking, climate catastrophe and, yes, destitution, judging them on how they arrived, not what they have left. As the Government play on the global stage by cutting aid to the world’s poorest and removing their last hope of being able to stay home and support family and community, play with our climate, which is burning our planet and every grain that could feed the most destitute, play war by selling arms while walking away from building peace, fail to use their voice, power and influence on the global stage to stem some of the worst violations against humanity, and preside over a broken asylum system and do not fix it, they must recognise their contribution to the decimation of the global order before pointing the blame at its victims.

From centuries of imperial abuse to withdrawing from reparation today, the Government are now prepared to suppress a small number of the 80 million people forced from their homes and land without shelter or hope. They are prepared to criminalise people who, for the want of safety and survival, and some just to be reunited with their families, have been subject to criminal gangs. Worse, the Bill will stop people even fleeing danger as the Government force them to apply to enter the UK from a place of peril or some offshore hidden place, creating more risk, more trauma and more harm.

I appeal to all Government Members not to tread those dark paths. I appeal to all who say they live by a moral code and are here to further justice and advance human rights not to support their Government tonight but to uphold our British values, which welcome the repressed and offer people somewhere to live safely. I am so proud to represent York, the UK’s only human rights city and a city of sanctuary, where we put the needs of others before our own, tear down walls and create bridges, and take care of those whose stories break us as they recount the trauma they have endured in their lives. We listen and we act. We quicken our resolve to speak up and stand up for human rights and against violations and abuses. That is why I speak out to oppose this oppressive legislation and say: not in my name.

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Judith Cummins)]

I call Sir John Hayes.