Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 27 October 2022 to Question 67097, on what date her Department publish its new Hate Crime Strategy.
Answered by Sarah Dines
No date has yet been determined for publication of the Hate Crime Strategy.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the levels of hate crime directed toward people with disabilities, when his Department's new hate crime strategy will be published.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
Hate crime is a scourge on communities across the country. It does not reflect the values of modern Britain.
All forms of hate crime are completely unacceptable. We expect the police to fully investigate these hateful attacks and make sure the cowards who commit them feel the full force of the law.
The Government is committed to reducing crime and getting more police on the streets and is considering the next best steps to do so.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of September 26 to Question 51845, what methods her Department uses to assess levels of satisfaction.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
The MP Account Management Team (MPAM) meets weekly to discuss operational performance, including feedback from MPs, to ensure we are providing the best service possible. A formal MP satisfaction survey is being launched in January 2023.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether it is still her Department's policy that eligibility for a British National (Overseas) visa will be extended to people born to at least one British parent in Hong Kong after 1997 in October 2022.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
On 24 February 2022, the Government announced in a Written Ministerial Statement a change to the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) (BN(O)) route, which will allow adult children of BN(O) status holders born on or after the 1 July 1997, who are currently unable to apply for the BN(O) route independently to do so. The statement is available at: Written statements - Written questions, answers and statements - UK Parliament.
The change is currently scheduled to come into effect this Autumn, at which point further information will be published on GOV.UK.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 22 September 2022 to Question 49740 on Members: Correspondence, what assessment she has made of the efficiency of transferring the responsibility for redacting detailed communications from a Government department to teams in MPs' offices.
Answered by Jeremy Quin
The use of single letters to MPs covering multiple cases is a temporary measure, but an integral part enabling us to respond effectively to the record number of enquiries over the past two years.
Once the department has returned to meeting it’s 20-day service standard the use of these letters will cease.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the MP Account Management Team response to the backlog of MPs' enquiries through individual telephone calls or meetings.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
Face to face engagement events and telephone surgeries are integral parts of both improving the service we provide for MPs, and enabling us to respond effectively to the record number of enquiries over the past two years. We have received positive feedback from MPs who have accessed this service and been responding to requests to provide it. It is our aim to clear the backlog by the end of February 2023, and we are currently tracking above forecast.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether issuing bulk response emails, including details of a number of different constituents, to enquiries which have exceeded the 20 working day service standard is GDPR compliant.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
The bulk response approach is compliant with GDPR guidelines. As is standard practice, MP’s offices will be expected to ensure that they only share any information obtained from the department with the relevant constituent to ensure compliance.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason the hon. Member for Lewisham, Deptford may have to wait until February 2023 for responses to enquiries sent to her Department in spring 2022.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
Performance against target has been impacted by an unprecedented increase in MP’s queries following the Afghan evacuation, Ukraine crisis and HMPO application surge.
The department has launched a recovery plan which will lead to incremental improvements in service standards over the coming five months with a return to a 20-day service standard by March 2023.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when the MP Account Management Team in her Department will be able to accept telephone enquiries for cases which do not relate to urgent passport or Ukraine visa applications.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
The MP Account Management Team (MPAM), via the MP Enquiry Line, already accept telephone queries for all cases.
Asked by: Vicky Foxcroft (Labour - Lewisham North)
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 expanding eligibility for British National (Overseas) Passports to British National (Overseas) visa holders who do not hold such passports, in order to allow them to receive British consular support when abroad and to be considered as Commonwealth citizens.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
A person is eligible for a British passport if HMPO can confirm their nationality and identity. Only British nationals are eligible for British passports.
Registrations for BN(O) status closed on 1 July 1997 and, as such, no new applications can now be made.
We have no plans to allow BN(O) status to be acquired by descendants of BN(O) status holders or people who have BN(O) visas. BN(O) status cannot be passed on to children.
British National (Overseas) visa holders are eligible to apply for British citizenship if they can meet the requirements, including having resided in the UK for a minimum period and being free from immigration control at the time of their application.