Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to her letter dated 28 April 2020 to the Chairs of the Work and Pensions and Home Affairs Select Committees, what steps her Department is taking to obtain evidence from local authorities in order to keep under review whether the no recourse to public funds condition should be suspended.

The Home Office is working closely with other government departments, including the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, the Department for Education and the Department of Health and Social Care to support people, including migrants with NRPF, through this crisis. Departments are sharing what they are learning from other bodies and charities with each other to ensure we continue to take a compassionate and pragmatic approach to an unprecedented situation

Many of the wide-ranging Covid-19 measures the Government has put in place are not public funds and are available to migrants with NRPF as described in the Home Secretary’s letter of 28 April to the Chairs of the Work and Pensions and Home Affairs Select Committee. Furthermore, the Government has published advice and information about the support available to migrants living here, including where they are subject to NRPF. This information covers statutory sick pay, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and Self-Employment Income Support Scheme and can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-get-support-if-youre-a-migrant-living-in-the-uk

Local Welfare Assistance Schemes are classed as public funds and so not available to migrants with NRPF. Local authorities can, however, provide basic safety net support if it is established there is a care need which does not arise solely from destitution, for example, where there are community care needs, migrants with serious health problems or family cases where the wellbeing of a child is in question. The Government has provided more than £3.2 billion of funding to local authorities in England, and additional funding under the Barnett formula to the devolved administrations to enable them to respond to Covid-19 pressures across all the services they deliver, including services helping the most vulnerable.

In addition, on the 8th April the Chancellor announced an additional £750m package of support for charities across the UK to ensure they can continue their vital work during the Covid-19 pandemic.

In light of the support available, we do not believe it is necessary to suspend the NRPF condition. We will keep the situation under review and consider further measures if needed.