Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 18 May 2022 to Question 847, on Asylum: Employment, how many asylum seekers have (a) applied for and (b) been accepted for permission to work or volunteer in (i) 2020, (ii) 2021 and (iii) 2022; and what steps her Department is taking to promote vacancies on the shortage occupations list to asylum seekers.

The Home Office are unable to report how many asylum seekers have applied for and been accepted for permission to work in 2020, 2021 and 2022 as this information is not held in a reportable format or forms part of published data.

The Home Office do not track how many asylum seekers have applied to volunteer as they are able give their time for free to charitable or public sector organisations without any contractual obligation or entitlement. They are not employees or workers as defined by various statutory provisions. Further information can be found at: Permission to work and volunteering for asylum seekers (accessible version) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Information on the shortage occupation list (SOL) is readily available in the public domain as part of the immigration rules: Immigration Rules - Guidance - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)