Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 24 April 2024 to Question 22532 on Home Office: Vivastreet, on what date discussions with adult service websites to explore a set of voluntary principles to counter exploitation on their sites began; and what her planned timescale is for finalising the voluntary principles.
Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
Discussions with adult services websites have been focused on measures to reduce harm on these sites, with the exploration of a set of voluntary principles to counter exploitation evolving from these discussions over time. Work to develop and finalise the principles is ongoing, and we expect to publish the principles in due course.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people arriving in the UK aboard any floating structure have been stopped under Schedule 7 Terrorism Act powers since the enactment of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The Home Office publishes data covering the use of the powers under Schedule 7 to the Terrorism Act 2000 on a quarterly basis.
This data can be found via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/operation-of-police-powers-under-the-terrorism-act-2000.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to ensure that the police have due regard to protecting the freedom of journalistic (a) photography and (b) other activity when implementing powers under the National Security Act 2023 relating to activity in the vicinity of prohibited places.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The prohibited places measures were included under the National Security Act to safeguard the United Kingdom’s most sensitive sites from hostile activity. The accompanying police powers enable the police to protect these sites by requiring people to not engage in certain conduct and to move away from these places where they have a reasonable belief that doing so is necessary to protect the safety or interests of the United Kingdom.
Recognised journalists conducting activity on or near prohibited sites – for example, a journalist taking photos from outside a prohibited place – where they do not have a purpose prejudicial to the safety or interests of the UK and there is nothing to suggest taking photographs is not permitted, such as signage or other distinguishing marker, would not commit an offence.
The police have access to comprehensive guidance on how officers should use the powers in relation to prohibited places under the National Security Act 2023. We do not routinely publish internal guidance, however, further resources and information on the prohibited places regime are available on gov.uk.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will publish the guidance his Department issues to the police on the implementation of powers under the National Security Act 2023 with regard to protecting journalistic (a) photography and (b) other activity in the vicinity of prohibited places.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The prohibited places measures were included under the National Security Act to safeguard the United Kingdom’s most sensitive sites from hostile activity. The accompanying police powers enable the police to protect these sites by requiring people to not engage in certain conduct and to move away from these places where they have a reasonable belief that doing so is necessary to protect the safety or interests of the United Kingdom.
Recognised journalists conducting activity on or near prohibited sites – for example, a journalist taking photos from outside a prohibited place – where they do not have a purpose prejudicial to the safety or interests of the UK and there is nothing to suggest taking photographs is not permitted, such as signage or other distinguishing marker, would not commit an offence.
The police have access to comprehensive guidance on how officers should use the powers in relation to prohibited places under the National Security Act 2023. We do not routinely publish internal guidance, however, further resources and information on the prohibited places regime are available on gov.uk.
Asked by: Lord Johnson of Marylebone (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government why all international students on postgraduate taught courses are counted as migrants, even though a proportion of those students leave the UK after less than a year.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Long-term international migration estimates are produced by the independent Office for National Statistics (ONS). Any decision around the methodology used to estimate net migration would be for the ONS. They use the “UN-recommended definition of a long-term international migrant”, a person who moves to another country other than their own for at least a year (12 months). Students who leave the UK within one year of their arrival are not considered to be long-term migrants. In their ‘Reason for international migration, international students update’ they said:
“An international student is currently defined as someone who arrives in the UK to study and remains for a period of 12 months or more. In line with the current United Nations (UN) definition of a long-term migrant, international students are included in our estimates of long-term immigration.”
Asked by: Dan Jarvis (Labour - Barnsley Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle anti-social behaviour in public green spaces.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
Last year the Government launched the Anti-social Behaviour Action Plan (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/anti-social-behaviour-action-plan) ensuring the police, local authorities and other relevant agencies have the tools they need to tackle anti-social behaviour.
The plan is backed by £160m of funding. This includes funding an increased police and other uniformed presence to clamp down on anti-social behaviour, targeting hotspots. Initially this was limited to 10 police force areas, including South Yorkshire, but in 2024/25 of £66m will be allocated to every police force to support a hotspot approach across England and Wales.
We have also provided funding to establish Immediate Justice pathways aimed at delivering swift, visible punishment for anti-social behaviour. This started in 10 police force areas and is being rolled out across England and Wales in 2024.
In addition, since 2020, £150 million has been allocated to the Safer Streets and Safety of Women at Night (SWaN) Funds. This has enabled 413 projects across England and Wales to invest in communities through a range of preventative interventions.
Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when his Department plans to publish draft guidance on the family reunion route for Afghan nationals under pathway one of the Afghan citizens resettlement scheme.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
We committed to opening the route for separated families under Pathway 1 of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) for referrals in the first half of this year and we remain on track to meet that deadline. Guidance will be published when the route is opened.
Asked by: Alison Thewliss (Scottish National Party - Glasgow Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what entitlements and restrictions will be attached to leave granted under section 8AA of the Immigration Act 1971 prior to the commencement of section 2(1) of the Illegal Migration Act 2023.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The length and conditions associated with leave granted under section 8AA of the Immigration Act 1971 prior to commencement of section 2(1) of the Illegal Migration Act 2023 will be set out in full by Ministers in due course.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many major police operations have included in their reports a statement that a deceased person would have been interviewed under caution had they been alive.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Home Office does not hold the data requested.
However, in the Home Office crime outcome statistics, outcome 12 is used to record investigations closed where a named suspect has been identified but is either too ill (physically or mentally) to prosecute, or is confirmed to have died either before the crime was reported to police or before enough evidence to charge could be obtained. In the 12 months to March 2023, the number of police investigations closed under outcome 12 in England and Wales was 18,335.
The crime outcome statistics cover all notifiable offences and do not distinguish between major and minor investigations. The statistics can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/crime-outcomes-in-england-and-wales-statistics.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Sharpe of Epsom on 27 February (HL2409), when the Government-funded feasibility study on estimating the prevalence of female genital mutilation and forced marriage in England and Wales will be published.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
As part of our commitment in the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy 2021, the Home Office commissioned the University of Birmingham in April 2023 to conduct a feasibility study to examine whether it is possible to develop prevalence estimates for both Female Genital Mutilation and Forced Marriage.
Given the hidden nature of these crimes and lack of robust estimates, knowing more about the individuals that experience it disproportionately will allow us to make more effective, evidence-based interventions.
We have now received the final report and are reviewing the findings to determine next steps.