Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he has taken to reduce the processing times for the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy since August 2021.

It is recognised that processing times within ARAP can vary considerably, dependent upon a number of factors including the complexity of the case, the need to conduct checks with other Government Departments, or the length of time it takes an applicant to respond to follow-up queries.

Significant progress has been made to accelerate the process in recent months, including additional Defence resource being made available and an enhanced casework system. Whilst a high number of applications continue to be received, the majority of these are duplicates or are ineligible and the team are actively processing and issuing decisions on more applications per month than are being received. MOD Officials also continue to work closely with partners across Government in order to ensure necessary checks are completed as soon as is practicable.

I would also like to assure the hon. Member that the continued effective operation of the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP) scheme is kept under regular review within the department by senior officials and Ministers, reflecting the priority of the scheme. Having successfully relocated over 11,600 individuals under the ARAP scheme so far, the primary focus for the ARAP team is identifying and relocating the estimated remaining 4,900 eligible individuals (including dependents), using HMG employment records to target efforts.