Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, for what reason thank you payments to sponsors hosting refugees from Ukraine for more than 12 months will reduce from £500 to £350 from 1 April 2025; and what assessment she has made of the potential impact of this reduction on (a) the ability of sponsors to continue hosting more than one refugee and (b) local authority budgets.
Answered by Rushanara Ali - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
To fund our continued support through the 18 month Ukraine Permission Extension Scheme visa period, and ensure it is affordable within government budgets, we have taken the difficult decision to reduce the level of thank you payments.
We recognise that this is a difficult time for many. Sponsors who feel they cannot continue to support their guests may want to consider asking guests to pay a reasonable and proportionate contribution (according to use) for water, gas and electricity consumed or supplied to the accommodation or to any shared facilities. Sponsors might want to talk with their guest about moving to a more formal arrangement and consider offering a rental property or make use of the Government’s Rent a Room scheme.
We are maintaining Government support for Ukrainians coming to the UK. For arrivals on Homes for Ukraine visas, local authorities continue to receive a tariff of £5,900 per Ukrainian arrival in their area (£10,500 for eligible minors), and councils have the flexibility to use this funding as best suits the local area which could include supporting guests to access privately rented accommodation.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his US counterpart on the US President's proposals on the transfer of Palestinians from Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary had a call with Secretary of State Marco Rubio on 27 January, prior to President Trump's comments on Gaza. The readout is available on gov.uk. We continue to engage closely with the US Administration across the spectrum of issues related to the situation in Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs). Our priority in Gaza remains sustaining the fragile ceasefire, ensuring that all the hostages are released, increasing the supply of aid, and breaking the ongoing cycle of violence in pursuit of a permanent, sustainable peace.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to his speech entitled The Kew Lecture: Foreign Secretary's speech on the climate crisis, given on 17 September 2024, whether he has made any changes to staffing organisation in his Department to reflect the new priorities set out in that speech; and how many staff in his Department are working primarily on global ocean protection.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Kew Lecture announced that UK Special Representatives for Climate and Nature would be appointed. Rachel Kyte CMG and Ruth Davis OBE took up these roles on 21 October and 15 November, respectively. In addition, several Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) roles have been created or amended to reflect the priorities set out in the Kew Lecture, for example to drive forward the new Global Clean Power Alliance.
Full information on how many FCDO staff work on energy, climate and environmental issues is not held centrally. Based on self-reported information, around 400 staff overseas, and around 330 staff in HQ roles, currently work on these issues, either full-time or along with other responsibilities. This includes 12 staff in HQ roles working primarily on different aspects of global ocean protection.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of comments by President Trump on Gaza on the (a) Camp David Accords and (b) Wadi Araba Treaty.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Egypt-Israel (Camp David) and Jordan-Israel (Wadi Araba) peace treaties were historic achievements. The US played an integral part in facilitating negotiations between Israel, Jordan and Egypt that has resulted in lasting peace. That is why we support a negotiated two-state solution between the Palestinians and Israel, that agrees a sovereign Palestinian state including the West Bank and Gaza, alongside a safe and secure Israel, with Jerusalem as a shared capital. The UK will continue to work with the US and regional partners to build consensus and identify solutions towards this aim that will deliver long-term peace and security for Israelis, Palestinians and the wider region.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the report from the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration entitled An inspection of asylum casework June-October 2023, published on 29 February 2024, whether she has taken steps to (a) identify vulnerable claimants in the asylum work in progress queue and (b) prioritise their claims.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
This report deals wholly with the Asylum Casework system under the previous administration.
The Home Office partially accepted the recommendation made in the report by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration 2024 “ICIBI annual report for 2023-24” to introduce a published service standard for deciding asylum claims.
We are reviewing that recommendation but this is a complex area that needs to balance operational efficiency, the needs of asylum seekers and the integrity of our asylum system, so we cannot provide an immediate answer on the proposed implementation timetable.
The Home Office accepted the recommendation made in the report by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration 2024 “ICIBI annual report for 2023-24” to (a) identify vulnerable claimants in the asylum work in progress queue and (b) prioritise their claims and we can confirm this work has been completed.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the report by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration entitled An inspection of Asylum Casework June-October 2023, whether her Department has taken steps to introduce a published service standard for deciding asylum claims.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
This report deals wholly with the Asylum Casework system under the previous administration.
The Home Office partially accepted the recommendation made in the report by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration 2024 “ICIBI annual report for 2023-24” to introduce a published service standard for deciding asylum claims.
We are reviewing that recommendation but this is a complex area that needs to balance operational efficiency, the needs of asylum seekers and the integrity of our asylum system, so we cannot provide an immediate answer on the proposed implementation timetable.
The Home Office accepted the recommendation made in the report by the Independent Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration 2024 “ICIBI annual report for 2023-24” to (a) identify vulnerable claimants in the asylum work in progress queue and (b) prioritise their claims and we can confirm this work has been completed.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate her Department has made of the amount of agricultural land required for bio-aviation fuels to meet (a) existing and (b) potential demand to allow for expansion of (i) Heathrow airport and (ii) other UK airports.
Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) mandate scheme is driving the uptake of lower carbon fuels used in aviation. The scheme does not support the supply of biofuels made from food, feed or energy crops. SAF must be made from sustainable wastes or residues (such as used cooking oil or forestry residues), recycled carbon fuels (e.g. unrecyclable plastics), or be power to liquid fuels made using low carbon (renewable or nuclear) electricity. Given these feedstocks do not require land, no estimate has been made of the amount of agricultural land required for bio-aviation fuels, under current or future demands.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for his Department's policies on food production of the report by the Royal Society entitled Net zero aviation fuels: resource requirements and environmental impacts, published on 28 February 2023.
Answered by Mike Kane - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The report in question concluded that a significant proportion of the UK’s land would be required for fuel production if crops were used to decarbonise aviation. The UK’s Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Mandate, which is designed to increase the amount of sustainable fuels used in aviation, prevents the diversion of resources away from food production. The Mandate includes strict sustainability criteria and SAF produced from food, feed or energy crops are not eligible under the scheme.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to Official Tribunals Statistics quarterly: July to September 2024, what analysis has been done of the reasons for the increase in asylum appeal cases in the category of Asylum/Protection/Revocation of Protection.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
Both the Tribunal Statistics Quarterly: July to September 2024 to which the question refers, published by the Ministry of Justice, and the latest Immigration System Statistics quarterly release, published by Home Office, explain that the rise in asylum appeals is linked to the increase in asylum claims receiving an initial decision as part of the Home Office’s work to reduce the initial decision backlog.
Asked by: Siân Berry (Green Party - Brighton Pavilion)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his Department's policies on renewable electricity generation of the Royal Society's report entitled Net zero aviation fuels: resource requirements and environmental impacts published on 28 February 2023.
Answered by Michael Shanks - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The report in question considers four potential net zero aviation fuels: hydrogen, ammonia, synthetic fuels (efuels) and biofuels. Recommendations include the need for further Research and Development of the efficient production, storage and use of green hydrogen and efuels.
The government is committed to delivering greener transport and supporting its missions to kick start economic growth and make Britain a clean energy superpower, and we will continue to work together with industry to consider the best way to support the aviation industry to decarbonise, including through the Jet Zero Taskforce.