Asked by: Mims Davies (Conservative - East Grinstead and Uckfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what amount she is planning to pay Wealden District Council under the Funding Instruction for Local Authorities: Asylum grant by 30th June 2026.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Cabinet Office publish annual grant funding data (Government Grants Data and Statistics) where you can find details of grant levels by local authority area broken down per year once available. The Home Office does not publish any additional information.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the report 'Deaths of unaccompanied asylum-seeking young people in the care of, or supported by, local authorities' by Da’aro Youth Project.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
We welcome the report of the Da’aro Youth Project. The Home Secretary engages regularly with ministerial colleagues across government on a range of issues relating to asylum, including safeguarding and the welfare of vulnerable individuals.
Last month, the Department for Education (DfE) launched a review into care leaver deaths, and deaths of young people who were unaccompanied asylum seeking children are being considered as part of this. Insights from the review will be shared later this year and will inform how DfE improve the support provided to care experienced young people across all aspects of their lives – including those who were unaccompanied asylum-seeking children
The Home Office works closely with the Department for Education at both ministerial and official level to support effective safeguarding arrangements and share information on risks affecting asylum seekers.
Where an individual is in the care of a local authority as a looked after child under its statutory duties in the Children Act 1989, that authority is responsible for considering and addressing all relevant matters linked to those duties, including risk assessment and safeguarding.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the King's Speech 2026: background briefing notes, published 13 May 2026, whether the overnight visitor levy will apply to transit accommodation for asylum seekers in asylum hotels.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
We are empowering Mayors to introduce a visitor levy on short-term overnight accommodation in their region to drive economic growth, including through support for the local visitor economy. Following the public consultation which closed on 18 February, the final design of the overnight visitor levy is still under consideration. Further information will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Lee Anderson (Reform UK - Ashfield)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her department is taking to increase the rate of (a) detention and (b) deportation for people found to be working illegally as delivery riders in Britain.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
Illegal working undermines honest employers, undercuts local wages, and fuels the criminal industry of immigration crime. This government is determined to clamp down on this illegal activity in every sector; including in the food delivery sector.
Since coming into power, this government has increased immigration enforcement action to the highest level, with an 83 percent rise in illegal working arrests and a 77 percent rise in raids.
We are clear that individuals who have no legal basis to remain in the United Kingdom should leave and we remain resolute in our commitment, as set out in our Restoring Order and Control: a statement on the Government’s asylum and returns policy (November 2025), to increasing returns.
Returns and deportations of illegal migrants, including those working illegally and foreign criminals, are at the highest levels in nearly a decade, with nearly 70,000 returns recorded in the first 21 months of this government, 41% more than the equivalent period up to the end of June 2024.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the increased risks, including risks of trafficking, to children as a result of the implementation of section 32 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 and the proposed changes in the family returns consultation affecting care leavers.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government is committed to ensuring that the best interests of the child are a primary consideration in all immigration and asylum decisions, and to safeguarding children from harm, including the risk of exploitation and trafficking.
Section 32 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 clarifies the framework for assessing protection claims by requiring decision-makers to take a forward-looking view of risk on return, based on established principles under the Refugee Convention and human rights law. All asylum claims are considered on their individual merits in line with the relevant legislation and published policy including ‘Processing Children’s Claims’ guidance and country information. Decisions are made by caseworkers specifically trained to handle claims from children, who are instructed to take factors including age and maturity into account when assessing credibility and risk on return.
Safeguarding considerations, including indicators of trafficking or modern slavery, remain an integral part of all asylum decision-making and are considered on a case-by-case basis in line with published guidance.
Whatever form it takes, exploitation, human trafficking and modern slavery is child abuse and relevant child protection procedures must be followed if this is suspected.
Child victims of exploitation, modern slavery and human trafficking are supported through a range of support systems. This includes statutory local authority support, the Government-funded Independent Child Trafficking Guardian (ICTG) service (where available) and county lines specialist support services.
Impact assessments, including consideration of the impacts to care leavers, will be undertaken and informed by the family returns consultation outcome and subsequent policy development. Any impact assessments will be finalised in advance of any decision to commence schedules 11 and 12 to the Immigration Act 2016.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of increases in deaths of unaccompanied asylum-seeking young people, in the context of the findings of the report 'Deaths of unaccompanied asylum-seeking young people in the care of,or supported by, local authorities' by Da'aro Youth Project.
Answered by Josh MacAlister - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is determined to address the shockingly high number of early deaths among care experienced young people, including unaccompanied asylum- seeking children and care leavers, who can be some of the most vulnerable people in our society due to their experiences.
The department welcomes the report of the Da’aro Youth Project and will carefully consider its findings as we implement measures in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026, supporting children in care and care leavers and deliver wider reforms to children’s social care.
Last month, we launched a review into care leaver deaths, and deaths of young people who were unaccompanied asylum seeking children are being considered as part of this. Insights from the review will be shared later this year and will inform how we improve the support provided to care experienced young people across all aspects of their lives, including those who were unaccompanied asylum-seeking children.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish the number of asylum seekers being housed in the country by parliamentary constituency.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on asylum seekers in receipt of Home Office support, by local authority, is published in table Asy_D11 of the ‘Asylum support datasets’.
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the Code of Practice for Statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, the resources required to compile the statistics, as well as quality and availability of data. These reviews allow us to balance the production of our regular statistics whilst developing new statistics for future release.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what medical assessment is in place for asylum seekers on arrival in the UK.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office takes the health and wellbeing of asylum seekers very seriously. Upon arrival by small boats, individuals undergo appropriate medical and security screening.
Asylum seekers have access to health and social care services from point of arrival in the UK and we work closely with the NHS, local authorities and contractors to ensure that asylum seekers can access the support they need.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Restore Britain - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether additional funding is provided to police forces that receive safeguarding disclosures from asylum seekers relating to alleged criminal incidents prior to arrival.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The government sets police budgets at the annual police funding settlement. The 2026–27 final police funding settlement provides up to £21.0 billion for the policing system in England and Wales. This is an increase of up to £1.4 billion compared with the 2025–26 settlement, representing a 6.9% cash increase and a 4.8% real terms increase.
Total funding to police forces will be up to £18.4 billion, an increase of up to £834 million compared to the 2025-26 police funding settlement. This equates to a 4.7% cash increase and a 2.7% real terms increase in funding.
Decisions on how funding and resources are utilised are an operational matter for Chief Constables and locally elected Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs), who are best placed to make resourcing decisions within their communities based on their local knowledge and experience.
Asked by: Lord Roberts of Llandudno (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to assist new arrivals in the UK to become part of the community.
Answered by Baroness Taylor of Stevenage - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Government is committed to supporting refugees and those granted protection in the UK to fully integrate and contribute to British economy and society, in a way that promotes community cohesion.
Refugees (those granted asylum, humanitarian protection or temporary protection under the Immigration Rules), as well as individuals on resettlement schemes with Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), have access to mainstream benefits and services to support their integration. Work is happening across Government and with local partners to ensure these services meet the needs of both refugees and the communities in which they live.
Across government, we work in partnership with local authorities to understand local needs and to support access to housing, services and community support. English language is a key part of integration. Adults in England can access English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) provision through the Adult Skills Fund, supporting access to education, employment and other opportunities. Alongside mainstream provision, the Government also funds targeted English language and employment support programmes, including the STEP programme.
The Government has also provided funding to Strategic Migration Partnerships in England to build local English language capacity and support community-based provision, helping people to access support and connect with their communities.
In Protecting What Matters, we committed to setting clear expectations for integration (including English language proficiency and participation in work) and to developing a cross-government integration strategy. Efforts will focus on removing barriers to participation, supporting underrepresented groups, and fostering a shared sense of values across the UK.