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Written Question
Dangerous Driving
Wednesday 7th February 2024

Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to tackle (a) driving through red lights. and (b) other forms of dangerous driving.

Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Government believes that any form of anti-social, dangerous or inconsiderate driving behaviour is a serious road safety issue.

Enforcement of road traffic law and how available resources are deployed is the responsibility of individual Chief Officers and Police and Crime Commissioners, taking into account the specific local problems and demands with which they are faced.

The Government will continue to support the police to ensure they have the tools needed to enforce road traffic legislation, including in relation to the offence of driving through red lights and other forms of dangerous driving.


Written Question
Asylum: Children
Monday 18th December 2023

Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to ensure that unaccompanied child asylum seekers are provided healthcare.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

We maintain that the best place for these children to be accommodated is within local authority care. As part of the national transfer scheme, the receiving local authority must provide suitable support for all children being moved into their care, including health care, irrespective of the child’s immigration status.

Asylum seekers have access to health and social care services from the point of arrival in the UK. The Home Office and its contractors work closely with the NHS, local authorities and non-governmental organisations to ensure that people can access the healthcare and support they need.

All accommodation providers, including those who were responsible for the unaccompanied asylum seeking children hotels that were previously set up and run by the Home Office, have a contractual duty to assist people in accessing the health care they need.

The Home Office also operates a Safeguarding Hub to support vulnerable individuals in accessing these services. In addition, the Home Office contracts Migrant Help to provide advice and guidance to asylum seekers should they have an issue with their accommodation or support, and for signposting to health and welfare services. Asylum seekers can access Migrant Help 24/7, every day of the year by a freephone telephone number, via an online chat or completing an email enquiry form both of which can be accessed free of charge on the Migrant Help website. Interpreting and translation services are available through Migrant Help when the need arises for asylum seekers to raise any queries or concerns.


Written Question
Asylum: Children
Monday 18th December 2023

Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to locate the unaccompanied children seeking asylum who have gone missing from their accommodation.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

The wellbeing of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children is our priority. We maintain that the best place for these children to be accommodated is within local authority care.

There are currently no unaccompanied children in hotels and unaccompanied children’s hotel accommodation has been empty since 18 November 2023. Of the 7 hotels which were operational in 2022, 6 of those were closed permanently on 30 November 2023.


We take the safety of those in our care seriously.  We have robust safeguarding procedures in place to ensure all young people in emergency interim hotels were safe and supported as we sought urgent placements with a local authority.

Police forces are responsible for locating missing children, in their region, in line with standard processes for any missing child in the UK.

When children who were provided with emergency Home Office accommodation went missing the MARS (Missing After Reasonable Steps) protocol was followed. The local authority works with multiple agencies to establish the young person's whereabouts and to ensure that they are safe.

Children staying in the Home Office hotels were supported by team leaders and support workers who were on site 24 hours a day. Further care was provided in hotels by teams of social workers and nurses. All contingency sites had security staff on site 24/7 and providers liaised closely with local police to ensure the welfare and safety of vulnerable residents.


Written Question
Asylum: Children
Monday 18th December 2023

Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to ensure that local authorities have adequate resources to support unaccompanied asylum-seeking children in their care.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

The safety and welfare of unaccompanied asylum-seeking children is our utmost priority. We recognise that providing care placements for them is a national issue that requires participation from local authorities across the UK. We continue to work alongside other government departments, devolved administrations, and local authority representatives, to ensure this vulnerable group of children have timely access to the statutory placements that local authorities must provide.

Local authorities receive funding to support Children’s Social Care through the Local Government Finance Settlement, and finance arrangements which apply to the devolved administrations. In addition, the Home Office also provides funding contributions to the costs incurred by local government in looking after unaccompanied asylum-seeking children and former UASC care leavers.

The Home Office has also introduced our new Incentivised Funding Programme for 2023-24 which provides £6,000 for every unaccompanied child moved within 5 working days either from a UASC hotel, or from Kent County Council.


Written Question
Asylum: Children
Monday 18th December 2023

Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what safeguarding information his Department collects on unaccompanied children who are seeking asylum.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

The Home Office collects information from individuals seeking asylum for the purpose of progressing asylum claims. When that information affects the type of accommodation an individual may require, that information is also recorded for the purposes of meeting our statutory obligation.

In respect of Unaccompanied Asylum Seeking Children, responsibility to accommodate them sits with the local authority and they are required to collate appropriate safeguarding information for each child in their care.

All unaccompanied asylum-seeking children receive a welfare interview on arrival in the UK.

Young people who were placed in emergency interim hotels which were operated by the Home Office had additional standard information collected from them to ensure that referrals or actions required due to any identified safeguarding concerns or issues could be made, including notifying the relevant local authority.

Young people in the hotels are supported by team leaders and support workers who are on site 24 hours a day. Further care is provided in hotels by teams of social workers and nurses.


Written Question
Asylum: Children
Monday 18th December 2023

Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what processes his Department has in place to help protect unaccompanied children seeking asylum who have been victims of (a) rape, (b) sexual assault and (c) sexual exploitation.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

We maintain that the best place for these children to be accommodated is within local authority care where they can receive the most appropriate support based on their individual needs.

We had robust safeguarding procedures in place to ensure all young people who were temporarily accommodated in Home Office run hotels were safe and supported as we sought urgent placements with a local authority.

Young people were supported by team leaders and support workers who were on site 24 hours a day. Further care was provided in hotels by teams of social workers and nurses. All contingency sites had security staff on site 24/7 and providers liaised closely with local police to ensure the welfare and safety of vulnerable residents.


Written Question
Recreation Spaces: Fire Prevention
Friday 21st July 2023

Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to mitigate the risk of wildfires starting in urban green spaces.

Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Home Office works closely with other departments and key stakeholders including Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities to mitigate against the risk of wildfire as set out in the Wildfire Framework for England. The framework can be found at Wildfire Framework for England | Fire England.

The government recognises the risk that wildfire presents for landscapes and communities and recently wrote to Local Resilience Forums to share lessons and recommendations from the recent 2022 wildfire season. Further actions are set out in the third National Adaptation Plan, which was recently published: Third National Adaptation Programme (NAP3) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)


Written Question
Motor Vehicles: Ownership
Friday 23rd June 2023

Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of requiring that scrapyards check the ownership of a vehicle before processing it.

Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)

The Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013 requires a scrap metal dealer or motor salvage operator to verify the identity of those selling scrap metal to them, and record details of the metal purchased.

Receipt of scrap metal by the scrap metal dealer or motor salvage operator without such verification is an offence.

Guidance issued by the Home Office states that if the dealer is uncertain about the provenance of an item, for example if the person selling it cannot provide documentation confirming ownership or purchase, it is good practice for the dealer to delay payment in order to verify the provenance of the item.

There are currently no plans to amend the 2013 Act.


Written Question
Travellers
Friday 23rd June 2023

Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 30 March 2023 to Question 173047 on Travellers, whether she plans to review the Equality Impact Assessment for the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022.

Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)

The measures relating to unauthorised encampments in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 will be subject to the normal post-legislative review three to five years after Royal Assent. This will include a review of the Equality Impact Assessment.

The current overarching equality impact assessment was published in September 2021 and is publicly available. Home Office measures in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Equalities Impact Assessment - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)


Written Question
Border Controls: Counter-terrorism
Monday 15th May 2023

Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of providing documentation to people who have been stopped under Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act so that they may potentially claim from travel insurers for any additional expenses incurred.

Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)

Under Schedule 7 to the Terrorism Act 2000 Counter-Terrorism Police Officers are able to stop, question and if necessary, detain and search individuals travelling through UK ports, to determine whether they appear to be someone who is or has been involved in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism.

If a person is stopped and questioned this may inconvenience their ongoing travel arrangements. The Code of Practice is clear that Examining officers must be aware of the potential disruption to travel to which an examination may give rise and should seek to minimise such disruption wherever practicable.

Where appropriate the examining officers will try to assist with seeking advice from transport operators on options for alternative travel arrangements. This may include the examining officer assisting the person with alternative travel arrangements although they may not be able to guarantee or book alternative travel.