Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask His Majesty's Government how much funding they allocated for destitution support for British National (Overseas) visa holders in (1) 2021/22, and (2) so far in 2022/23; and how much of this was accessed by BNO visa holders in each of those years.

The UK-wide Hong Kong Welcome Programme was launched in April 2021, providing a comprehensive support package with an easily accessible universal offer as its foundation, progressing to targeted support for those most in need.

£30.7 million was provisionally allocated in 2021/22 as funding for local authorities in England that provided British National (Overseas) visa holders with support to improve their English language or because they were destitute or at risk of destitution. The funding is demand-led with claims being made by local authorities on a retrospective basis after the support has been provided. No local authorities submitted claims in 2021/22 for support to BN(O)s who were destitute or at risk of destitution.

Funding for 2022/23 has continued to be available on a demand-led basis for local authorities that provide BN(O) visa holders on the same basis as 2021/22. The amount of funding accessed to date in 2022/23 to support Hong Kong BN(O)s who were destitute or at risk of destitution is so small that disclosing this information could lead to individuals being identified.