Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will publish a breakdown of Personal Independence Payment claimants by (a) nationality and (b) immigration status in each year since 2020.

Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department applies sanctions to countries that refuse to accept deported nationals.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

Where cooperation with countries on returns falls below the levels expected, and where appropriate, we will use all levers available to us.

Sections 70-74 the new Nationality and Borders Act 2022 (NABA) gives HMG the ability to impose visa penalties where countries are deemed to be uncooperative on returns. The full provision can be found here: Nationality and Borders Act 2022.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has sought to negotiate returns agreements with (a) Pakistan, (b) Albania, (c) Nigeria and (d) Somalia in the last five years.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The UK has returns agreements with these four countries that facilitate the return of individuals with no legal basis to remain in the UK. We continue to work with each of these countries on returns and to manage irregular migration.

This Government is committed to maintaining and improving returns cooperation with all countries to which we are seeking to remove those with no legal basis to remain in the UK. Most people return voluntarily without their return needing to be enforced but for some enforced returns, confirmation of identity and nationality, including for the provision of travel documentation, needs to be obtained before removal can be affected. There is a limited number of countries where this process can be challenging. We continue to seek opportunities to build returns co-operation with these four countries through official and ministerial engagement, operational returns arrangements and agreements.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the number of deportations that have failed due to a lack of cooperation from foreign governments.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The UK has returns agreements with these four countries that facilitate the return of individuals with no legal basis to remain in the UK. We continue to work with each of these countries on returns and to manage irregular migration.

This Government is committed to maintaining and improving returns cooperation with all countries to which we are seeking to remove those with no legal basis to remain in the UK. Most people return voluntarily without their return needing to be enforced but for some enforced returns, confirmation of identity and nationality, including for the provision of travel documentation, needs to be obtained before removal can be affected. There is a limited number of countries where this process can be challenging. We continue to seek opportunities to build returns co-operation with these four countries through official and ministerial engagement, operational returns arrangements and agreements.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of staff in her Department are dedicated to enforcing deportation orders.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office does not hold centrally collated data on the precise number or proportion of staff exclusively dedicated to enforcing deportation orders. Enforcement activity focussed on deportation orders is carried out across the Home Office with responsibilities spanning multiple functions including removals, detention, and casework.

Staff working on deportation orders are often deployed flexibly across broader returns and enforcement workstreams. As such, it is not possible to disaggregate staffing figures to isolate those solely focused on deportation enforcement and obtaining the specific information requested would involve collating and verifying information from multiple systems owned by multiple teams across the Home Office and, therefore, could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. The Home Office does not hold any central record of the requested information.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many deportations have been prevented by interim measures of the European Court of Human Rights in each of the last five years.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Information requested regarding how many deportations have been prevented by interim measures of the European Court of Human Rights in each of the last five years is not held centrally and to obtain it would exceed the disproportionate cost threshold.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many staff her Department employs to organise deportation flights.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

Staff working on deportation flights are often deployed flexibly across broader returns and enforcement workstreams. As such, it is not possible to disaggregate staffing figures to isolate those solely focused on deportation flights and obtaining the specific information requested would involve collating and verifying information from multiple systems owned by multiple teams across the Home Office and, therefore, could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. The Home Office does not hold any central record of the requested information.

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason her Department is advertising a role in Manchester Community Centre for a Sharia Law Administrator.

Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

This was a position advertised on the Find A Job portal by an independent charity, registered with the Charity Commission, and was not a role within DWP. Find A Job is a free platform to help jobseekers find vacancies with employers from various sectors. The employer had been verified as legitimate and the advertisement did not breach Find a Job website terms and conditions.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has provided funding to the Centre for Hate Studies at the University of Leicester.

Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

The department has not provided funding to the Centre for Hate Studies at the University of Leicester.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what estimate he has made of the number of additional (a) civil servants and (b) contractors required to administer a digital ID system.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government is committed to making the state more efficient and easier to interact with through harnessing technology. We want to learn from countries who have digitised government services for the benefit of their citizens.

We are looking at whether a new digital ID could help tackle illegal immigration, transform public services, and bring benefits to people’s everyday lives. No firm decision, estimate or assessment has yet been made.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of digital identity services for (a) individual freedom and (b) personal privacy.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government is committed to making the state more efficient and easier to interact with through harnessing technology. We want to learn from countries who have digitised government services for the benefit of their citizens.

We are looking at whether a new digital ID could help tackle illegal immigration, transform public services, and bring benefits to people’s everyday lives. No firm decision, estimate or assessment has yet been made.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of the risk of digital identity systems being used for surveillance of people.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government is committed to making the state more efficient and easier to interact with through harnessing technology. We want to learn from countries who have digitised government services for the benefit of their citizens.

We are looking at whether a new digital ID could help tackle illegal immigration, transform public services, and bring benefits to people’s everyday lives. No firm decision, estimate or assessment has yet been made.

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment he has made of the value for money of a digital ID system compared to existing forms of identification.

Answered by Kanishka Narayan - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

The Government is committed to making the state more efficient and easier to interact with through harnessing technology. We want to learn from countries who have digitised government services for the benefit of their citizens.

We are looking at whether a new digital ID could help tackle illegal immigration, transform public services, and bring benefits to people’s everyday lives. No firm decision, estimate or assessment has yet been made.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish the number of staff working in her Department, broken down by nationality.

Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)

Nationality can be taken upon recruitment and on occasion where it is required for internal procedures.

However, these are not in a retrievable format and can only be obtained via disproportionate effort. In any case, due to the low numbers held by the Home Office, this would not be a true representation of the nationalities employed.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the projected cost to the public purse is of Chevening scholarships awarded to students from Gaza for 2025-26.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

All costs will be covered under the normal Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Chevening Scholarship Programme.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing English language requirements for non-UK staff within the NHS.

Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

Where legally required, healthcare professionals must be registered with the appropriate United Kingdom healthcare regulator to be able to practise. Professionals who qualified outside the UK must demonstrate they have the necessary knowledge of English as part of the regulator’s assessment of their healthcare qualifications, knowledge, and skills. The process and accepted evidence for demonstrating English language proficiency varies according to regulator, the healthcare role and the circumstances of applicants.

The healthcare regulators are independent of Government, and it is for regulators to determine the required processes and thresholds in relation to English language competence for registrants.

General practitioners, dentists and opticians delivering National Health Service primary care must also be on the relevant NHS performers list. Applicants’ ability to communicate effectively and safely with patients and colleagues is assessed as part of the performers list application process.

For the performers lists in England, it is NHS England policy that the required level of English language competence for admission to the list is the same as that required by the relevant healthcare regulator. If there are concerns about an applicant’s English language competence, they will be required to demonstrate competence by further assessment. This may be an oral exam with an assessor from NHS England or satisfactory completion of the International English Language Test System or the Occupational English Test.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the cost to the public purse was of the (a) evacuation and (b) relocation of Palestinian students from Gaza to the UK in 2025.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

There is no published data for the costs of the evacuation and relocation of Palestinian students from Gaza to the UK in 2025.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has has made of the potential impact of the the suspension of refugee family reunion route on number of visa applications.

Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

The suspension of the refugee family reunion route is temporary while the Government undertakes a full review and reform of the current family rules to ensure we have a fair and properly balanced system. In the meantime, those with protection status can use other family routes to sponsor a partner and child to come to the UK. Information relating to these changes are published on gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/statement-of-changes-to-the-immigration-rules-hc-1298-4-september-2025.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the cost of private security contractors used in deportations has been in each of the last five years.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office uses its Escorting and Related Services Contract with Mitie Care and Custody to effect Returns of persons with no right to remain within the UK. The costs of this contract are routinely published as part of the Home Office Transparency data, and can be found at Home Office spending - GOV.UK.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many deportations have been delayed as a result of injunctions granted by domestic courts citing the European Convention on Human Rights in each of the last five years.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The information requested, regarding the number of delayed deportations of foreign national offenders (FNOs) as a result of challenges under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights and injunctions granted by domestic courts citing the European Convention on Human Rights, is not held centrally and to obtain it would exceed the disproportionate cost threshold.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the top five reasons are for deportation flights being cancelled.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The information you have required is not available from published statistics.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many deportations have been delayed as a result of challenges under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights in the last 12 months.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

The information requested, regarding the number of delayed deportations of foreign national offenders (FNOs) as a result of challenges under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights and injunctions granted by domestic courts citing the European Convention on Human Rights, is not held centrally and to obtain it would exceed the disproportionate cost threshold.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of publishing league tables of deportation compliance by countries.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

We continue to use an array of tools, including through diplomatic engagement, to maintain and improve international returns co-operation.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the backlog in deportation cases.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

As committed to in the Immigration White Paper (12 May 2025), the Government will shortly publish a formal Asylum Policy Statement setting out radical reforms to modernise the asylum system and strengthen border security. These proposals will include a new protection offer, accelerated decision-making, fast-track appeals and returns, as well as reforms to family rights and Article 8 claims.

Latest published information shows that at the end of Q2 2025 there were 19,390 foreign national offenders (FNOs) living in the community having completed their custodial sentences and subject to deportation.

The Home Office faces significant and complex challenges when seeking to return those who have no right to be in the UK to their country of origin or lawful place of return. Despite these barriers, we are fully committed to making our communities safer by deporting those who break our laws.

That is why are legislating to introduce a 24-week timeframe, this will speed up the appeals process for foreign criminals subject to ensuring that a fair hearing can take place.

This government has already removed 5,179 FNOs in its first year in office, a 14 per cent increase on the previous twelve months, and we will continue to ensure there is no hiding place for foreign criminals in our country.

The latest figures on the increase in returns can be found at: Returns from the UK between 5 July 2024 and 4 July 2025 - GOV.UK.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many seats were booked on deportation charter flights in the last year; and how many were used.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

In the year 5 September 2024 to 4 September 2025 inclusive, the capacity available for those being returned on the 64 returns charter flights that operated was 3717 seats. Of these, 2972 seats were used across the 64 returns charter flights.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many charter flights for deportations were scheduled in the last 12 months; and how many took place.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

In the year 5 September 2024 to 4 September 2025 inclusive, 69 returns charter flights were arranged, 64 were operated and five did not take place.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what her Department’s policy is on restricting multiple appeals against deportation.

Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)

In most deportation cases, there is no right of appeal unless the person concerned makes a human rights or protection claim, in which case there is a right of appeal against a decision to refuse the claim.

As part of efforts to fix the broken asylum system the Government inherited, proposals are being developed to ensure immigration and asylum appeals are heard more quickly, with safeguards to maintain high standards, mechanisms to surge capacity when needed, and processes to accelerate and prioritise cases. These proposals will also include new procedures to tackle repeat applications and last-minute claims that frustrate removal action.

Currently, where a person has already brought an appeal on human rights or protection grounds and then makes further submissions, they are subject to a robust test which if not met means their submissions will be rejected without a right of appeal. There is only an appeal where a person raises something that has not previously been considered which, taken together with any previously considered material, creates a realistic prospect of success.

Where a person has permission to stay in the UK under the EU Settlement Scheme, there is a right of appeal against a decision to make a deportation order against them, in compliance with the Agreement on the Withdrawal of the UK from the EU. That right can only be exercised once, unless another deportation decision is made.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many pubs have closed each year since 2015.

Answered by Josh Simons - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon Gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 2nd September is attached.

National inquiry into group-based child sexual exploitation and abuse

Support for pubs

Local government reorganisation

East Tilbury Primary School award

Cancellation of local elections

Condition of hospitals

Digital ID cards and surveillance

International driving test standards and road safety

Digital ID

Assasination of Charlie Kirk

Conduct of the Hon. Mr Justice Jay