Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to increase awareness of e-visas in other countries.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Home Office is developing a border and immigration system that is more digital and streamlined. eVisas - which over 6 million people have been successfully using for several years - are a key part of this transformation and will enhance people's experience and increase the immigration system's security and efficiency.
We continue to deliver a wide range of communications activity to raise awareness of eVisas, both in the UK and overseas.
We have undertaken extensive engagement with foreign governments in conjunction with the FCDO to raise awareness of the transition to eVisas and the phasing out of physical immigration documents. Our Engagement Team have met with Embassies and High Commissions and produced communication materials to assist with this transition.
We have also delivered a significant eVisa communications campaign, which has encouraged holders of physical immigration documents to take action to access their eVisa, and key elements of this have sought to reach an international audience. At key points in eVisa delivery throughout 2024, the Home Office communications team issued eVisa announcement press notices to diaspora media and international journalists, and held three press briefings to which international media were invited. This activity resulted in wide-ranging international eVisa media coverage.
We recognise that the transition to eVisas may affect some countries’ internal processes where verification of UK immigration status may be required. We have informed other Governments that a person can do this through a share code, a physical document confirming their UK status or permission, a screen from a person’s UKVI account, or a copy of a letter or email sent to the person when their status or permission was granted. It is a matter for individual countries to set their own policies but we have engaged with them, through FCDO, about what the transition to eVisa means, and continue to do so. We advise that people check what individual countries’ requirements are before travelling or applying for a visa.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to respond to the correspondence of 11 December 2024 from the hon. Member for Tooting, reference number RA60941.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Home Office responded to the correspondence on 7 January.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to improve neighbourhood policing.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
Neighbourhood policing sits at the heart of the British policing model. It is a critical building block in helping communities feel safe.
That is why we are introducing the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, restoring patrols to town centres and recruiting thousands of extra police officers, PCSOs and Special Constables, and we will set out further details in due course.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on what grounds the asylum seeker sent to Rwanda on 30 April 2024 had claimed asylum.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson
Individuals who have no right to remain in the UK legally are being offered voluntary relocation to Rwanda under a new agreement with the Government of Rwanda. This will relocate individuals who have no right to work, rent or remain in the UK to relocate to Rwanda and allow them to build safe and prosperous lives there.
Individuals will receive £3,000 to support their relocation, paid to them on a card that can only be used in Rwanda.
This builds on our already widely used voluntary returns scheme, which saw more than 19,000 people return to their country-of-origin last year. We can also now facilitate relocation to Rwanda, providing an alternative for those whose country of origin is unsafe or those who would prefer not to return, but have no right to remain in the UK.
Under this Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Rwanda, individuals relocated voluntarily will have the same package of support for up to five years and access to integration programmes, so that they can study, undertake training, and work. Actual spend of the policy will be reported as part of the annual Home Office Reports and Accounts in the usual way.
It would not be appropriate to provide individual details of voluntary relocations that the Home Office has helped facilitate.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much was spent on sending an asylum seeker to Rwanda on 30 April 2024.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson
Individuals who have no right to remain in the UK legally are being offered voluntary relocation to Rwanda under a new agreement with the Government of Rwanda. This will relocate individuals who have no right to work, rent or remain in the UK to relocate to Rwanda and allow them to build safe and prosperous lives there.
Individuals will receive £3,000 to support their relocation, paid to them on a card that can only be used in Rwanda.
This builds on our already widely used voluntary returns scheme, which saw more than 19,000 people return to their country-of-origin last year. We can also now facilitate relocation to Rwanda, providing an alternative for those whose country of origin is unsafe or those who would prefer not to return, but have no right to remain in the UK.
Under this Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Rwanda, individuals relocated voluntarily will have the same package of support for up to five years and access to integration programmes, so that they can study, undertake training, and work. Actual spend of the policy will be reported as part of the annual Home Office Reports and Accounts in the usual way.
It would not be appropriate to provide individual details of voluntary relocations that the Home Office has helped facilitate.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what airline took an asylum seeker to Rwanda on 30 April 2024.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson
Individuals who have no right to remain in the UK legally are being offered voluntary relocation to Rwanda under a new agreement with the Government of Rwanda. This will relocate individuals who have no right to work, rent or remain in the UK to relocate to Rwanda and allow them to build safe and prosperous lives there.
Individuals will receive £3,000 to support their relocation, paid to them on a card that can only be used in Rwanda.
This builds on our already widely used voluntary returns scheme, which saw more than 19,000 people return to their country-of-origin last year. We can also now facilitate relocation to Rwanda, providing an alternative for those whose country of origin is unsafe or those who would prefer not to return, but have no right to remain in the UK.
Under this Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Rwanda, individuals relocated voluntarily will have the same package of support for up to five years and access to integration programmes, so that they can study, undertake training, and work. Actual spend of the policy will be reported as part of the annual Home Office Reports and Accounts in the usual way.
It would not be appropriate to provide individual details of voluntary relocations that the Home Office has helped facilitate.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the prevalence of abuse of people of restricted growth.
Answered by Laura Farris
We have a robust legislative framework to respond to all forms of hate crime, including those which target a person’s disability.
Whilst the police are operationally independent and work in line with the College of Policing’s operational guidance to respond to hate crime, we expect them to fully investigate these offences and work with the Crown Prosecution Service to ensure perpetrators are brought to justice.
The Government is pleased to see the overall reduction in police-recorded hate crime in the year ending March 2023, including a 1% reduction in disability hate crime compared with the previous year. However, any instance is one too many and we remain absolutely committed to ensuring these offences are stamped out.
A person of restricted growth is not necessarily a disabled person. A disability hate crime is any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim or any other person to be motivated by a hostility or prejudice based on a person’s disability or perceived disability, or any disability including physical disability, learning disability and mental health or developmental disorders. This will be a question of fact in each case.
Our absolute priority is to get more police onto our streets, cut crime, protect the public and bring more criminals to justice. We are supporting the police by providing them with the resources they need. We delivered our commitment to recruit an additional 20,000 officers by March 2023 and there are now over 149,000 officers in England and Wales, which is higher than the previous peak in March 2010 before the Police Uplift Programme.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the impact of the proposed changes to the minimum salary threshold for spousal visas on individuals already living in the UK on such a visa.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
Analytical work has been undertaken across Government to support decision making in this process, and an Impact Assessment will be developed in due course.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the number of people who will be unable to renew their visas under the proposed changes to the minimum salary threshold in (a) Tooting constituency and (b) the UK.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
Analytical work has been undertaken across Government to support decision making in this process, and an Impact Assessment will be developed in due course.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many couples on a spousal visa with a combined income of over £38,700 but individual incomes of under £38,700 will be affected by the proposed changes to the minimum salary threshold.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
Analytical work has been undertaken across Government to support decision making in this process, and an Impact Assessment will be developed in due course.