Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish the number of fee waiver applications for children registering for British citizenship since June 2022, broken down by quarter.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Office monitors the number of fee waiver applications for children registering for British citizenship. However, management information in this area is currently being collated, reviewed and assured, and we are therefore not in a position to share figures at this time. We are however considering the best mechanism for updating Parliament with this information when available and will do so at the earliest appropriate opportunity.
Prior to 16 June 2022, an application to register as a British citizen as a child, required the appropriate application fee to be paid and there was no discretion to waive the citizenship application fee.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many fee waiver applications for children applying for British citizenship were for children in care between June (a) 2021-2022 and (b) 2022-2023.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Office monitors the number of fee waiver applications for children registering for British citizenship. However, management information in this area is currently being collated, reviewed and assured, and we are therefore not in a position to share figures at this time. We are however considering the best mechanism for updating Parliament with this information when available and will do so at the earliest appropriate opportunity.
Prior to 16 June 2022, an application to register as a British citizen as a child, required the appropriate application fee to be paid and there was no discretion to waive the citizenship application fee.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 5 July 2023 to Question 191982 on General Practitioners: Migrant Workers, when she plans to the four-month visa extension for newly trained international medical graduates to take effect.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
We will be amending the immigration rules shortly to cater for International Medical Graduate GPs arriving from the Autumn so they can benefit from the four-month extension automatically. We are also working closely with the relevant UK health bodies and UK Visas and Immigration to ensure that this is as straight forward as possible for those already in country, and those due to complete their training this year.
In conjunction with these changes, we continue work to encourage more GP surgeries to become Home Office sponsors. This will allow surgeries to recruit international medical graduates more efficiently on completion of their training.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether financial support is available for the dependents of an individual on immigration detention bail whose right to work has been withdrawn.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The number and type of immigration bail conditions to impose will vary depending on the circumstances of the individual case. If the person being granted immigration bail does not have any leave to enter or remain in the UK, it will be appropriate to impose a bail condition restricting work in the majority of cases.
An asylum seeker, or failed asylum seeker with outstanding protection-based further submissions, whose claim has been outstanding for more than 12 months through no fault of their own, may be granted permission to work. Those who are allowed to work are restricted to jobs on the Shortage Occupation list. Further information is set out in the published HO guidance - Permission to work and volunteering for asylum seekers.
Asylum seekers and failed asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute are eligible for support under section 95 or section 4 of the Immigration & Asylum 1999 Act. This would also include dependents of an asylum seeker or a failed asylum seeker on immigration bail.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether people on immigration detention bail can request restrictions on their right to work be lifted.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The number and type of immigration bail conditions to impose will vary depending on the circumstances of the individual case. If the person being granted immigration bail does not have any leave to enter or remain in the UK, it will be appropriate to impose a bail condition restricting work in the majority of cases.
An asylum seeker, or failed asylum seeker with outstanding protection-based further submissions, whose claim has been outstanding for more than 12 months through no fault of their own, may be granted permission to work. Those who are allowed to work are restricted to jobs on the Shortage Occupation list. Further information is set out in the published HO guidance - Permission to work and volunteering for asylum seekers.
Asylum seekers and failed asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute are eligible for support under section 95 or section 4 of the Immigration & Asylum 1999 Act. This would also include dependents of an asylum seeker or a failed asylum seeker on immigration bail.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether restrictions on the right to work can be lifted while an individual is on immigration detention bail.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The number and type of immigration bail conditions to impose will vary depending on the circumstances of the individual case. If the person being granted immigration bail does not have any leave to enter or remain in the UK, it will be appropriate to impose a bail condition restricting work in the majority of cases.
An asylum seeker, or failed asylum seeker with outstanding protection-based further submissions, whose claim has been outstanding for more than 12 months through no fault of their own, may be granted permission to work. Those who are allowed to work are restricted to jobs on the Shortage Occupation list. Further information is set out in the published HO guidance - Permission to work and volunteering for asylum seekers.
Asylum seekers and failed asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute are eligible for support under section 95 or section 4 of the Immigration & Asylum 1999 Act. This would also include dependents of an asylum seeker or a failed asylum seeker on immigration bail.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a family reunification scheme for Sudan that is similar to the Ukraine Family Scheme.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
We recognise that some people displaced may wish to join family in the UK, and where those family members do not have a current UK visa, they can apply for one via one of our standard visa routes, which remain available, and applications can be submitted at the nearest Visa Application Centre. Guidance on how to apply for a family visa can be found at: Family visas: apply, extend or switch: Overview - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
In addition, close family members of individuals who are in the UK with permission to stay as a refugee may be eligible to apply under the family reunion arrangements. Details can be found at: Application for UK visa (family joining refugee): appendix 4 VAF4A - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of children applying for British citizenship had their application fees waived since (a) June 2022 and (b) June 2021.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Office monitors the number of fee waiver applications for children registering for British citizenship. However, management information in this area is currently being collated, reviewed and assured, and we are therefore not in a position to share figures at this time. We are however considering the best mechanism for updating Parliament with this information when available and will do so at the earliest appropriate opportunity.
Prior to 16 June 2022, an application to register as a British citizen as a child, required the appropriate application fee to be paid and there was no discretion to waive the citizenship application fee.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 18 October 2022 to Question 60187 on Northern Ireland Strategic Migration Partnership: Finance, if she will provide an update on her Department's progress in implementing a new system to bring together funding streams in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
In full consultation with relevant partners in Northern Ireland, the Home Office has formally ended the funded relationship with Northern Ireland Strategic Migration Partnership (SMP) which was communicated to NI SMP and other relevant partners in April of this year. The Home Office will form a new agreement with the Government Department in Northern Ireland for which funding has been agreed.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Northern Ireland Strategic Migration Partnership in promoting partnership between her Department and the devolved Administrations.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
In full consultation with relevant partners in Northern Ireland, the Home Office has formally ended the funded relationship with Northern Ireland Strategic Migration Partnership (SMP) which was communicated to NI SMP and other relevant partners in April of this year. The Home Office will form a new agreement with the Government Department in Northern Ireland for which funding has been agreed.