Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Afghan (a) principals and (b) dependents are being housed in hotel accommodation under the (i) Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy and (ii) Afghan citizens resettlement scheme.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The UK has made an ambitious and generous commitment to resettle Afghans fleeing persecution and those who served the UK.
The latest published Immigration system statistics, year ending December 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) show that (up to the end of December 2023) we have brought around 27,900 people to safety from Afghanistan and the region.
These statistics also show that:
Afghan operational data is viewable at Afghan Resettlement Programme: operational data - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Afghan people are awaiting an initial decision on their asylum application as of 18 April 2024.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on asylum applications awaiting an initial decision by nationality are published in table Asy_D03 of the ‘Asylum applications awaiting an initial decision detailed datasets’. Information on how to use the dataset can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbook. The latest data relates to 31 December 2023. Data as at 31 March 2024 will be published on 23 May 2024.
Information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘Research and statistics calendar’.
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 (a) had their phone confiscated by border force and (b) had their data digitally downloaded since 2022.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson - Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
The Home Office are unable to provide the requested data. This is on the basis that it is operationally sensitive and not stored in an easily accessible format.
Border Force, Immigration Enforcement and police colleagues use every tool at their disposal to investigate and disrupt the people smuggling networks who facilitate dangerous crossings on such floating vessels and structures, including seizing and examining mobile phones which could assist with criminal investigations.
Asked by: Peter Gibson (Conservative - Darlington)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to ensure that universities are following English proficiency requirements for foreign students.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), as part of their compliance activities, conduct on-site audits of sponsors and check what assessment methods sponsors have used and their relevant evidence. Where there are any compliance breaches, UKVI take compliance action which can include formal action plans or revocation of the sponsor licence. English language assessments are also considered as part of the Basic Compliance Assessment which sponsors are required to pass on an annual basis.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much his Department has spent on costs associated with (a) AAA and others v Secretary of State for the Home Department, [2022] HWHC 3230 (Admin), for which judgment was passed on 19 December 2022, (b) AAA and others v Secretary of State for the Home Department, [2023] EWCA Civ 745, for which judgment was passed on 29 June 2023, (c) R (on the application of AAA and others) v Secretary of State for the Home Department, [2023] UKSC 42 on appeal from [2023] EWCA Civ 745, for which judgment was passed on 15 November 2023 and (d) other court cases relating to individual appeals against removal to Rwanda.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson - Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
The most recently published information which includes legal fees is the National Audit Office Report which can be found here: Investigation into the costs of the UK-Rwanda Partnership - NAO report.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many field visits the Monitoring Committee of the Migration and Economic Development Partnership has conducted in (a) the UK and (b) Rwanda in (i) 2024, (ii) 2023 and (iii) 2022.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson - Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
The Monitoring Committee have been taken through the end-to-end process under the partnership. This took place in Kigali in March 2023 and in the UK in May 2023 and have also held official and non-official meetings throughout 2022, 2023 and 2024 as well as undertaking training and testing of IT systems.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many times the Migration and Economic Development Partnership Monitoring Committees in (a) Rwanda and (b) the UK have met (i) separately and (ii) together.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson - Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
The Monitoring Committee have been taken through the end-to-end process under the partnership. This took place in Kigali in March 2023 and in the UK in May 2023 and have also held official and non-official meetings throughout 2022, 2023 and 2024 as well as undertaking training and testing of IT systems.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what legal assistance will be available in Rwanda to asylum seekers relocated under the UK-Rwanda treaty.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson - Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
Relocated Individuals will be provided with legal representation free of charge throughout the asylum process. Part 3 of Annex B to the treaty details the provision that shall be made in Rwanda for Relocated Individuals to access legal assistance and interpreters.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many detention spaces are available for people seeking asylum who are due to be deported to Rwanda.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson - Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
As of 24 April, the Home Office has the capacity to detain around 2,200 people in immigration removal centres.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many case workers in the UK have received training to manage and process the deportation of individuals seeking asylum to Rwanda.
Answered by Michael Tomlinson - Minister of State (Minister for Illegal Migration)
As the Prime Minister has already set out, the necessary case workers in the UK have been recruited and trained and are ready to make decisions in preparation for the first individuals being relocated.