Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the visa brake on nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan on women at risk of gender-based and sexual violence.

Equality Impact Assessments have been completed in line with the Equality Act 2010 for the visa brakes on Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan.

The UK takes its humanitarian, development, and conflict prevention work seriously and remains committed to supporting countries affected by conflict, instability, and poverty. In Afghanistan, the UK’s £151 million aid programme (equivalent to 13.3 billion Afghanis) provides lifesaving support to vulnerable communities, with a commitment that at least half of those reached are women and girls.

The UK is committed to supporting people in Sudan, Myanmar, and neighbouring regions. The UK provides £146 million in humanitarian aid to Sudan this financial year, assisting over 2.5 million people since the conflict began in 2023. In Myanmar, the UK continues to support a more stable future for the population, providing humanitarian assistance to more than 1.4 million people in the past year and essential health services to 1.3 million. Since the 2021 military coup, the UK has supplied over £190 million in assistance to help address the country’s ongoing humanitarian crisis.

As set out in the Restoring Order and Control policy statement, the Government remains committed to the introduction of capped safe and legal routes for refugees and displaced people to come to the United Kingdom. Work is underway to develop these routes, including confirming the eligibility criteria and the number of places to be made available for each new safe and legal route.