Asked by: Lyn Brown (Labour - West Ham)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent estimate her Department has made of the impact of the no recourse to public funds policy on levels of (a) homelessness and (b) rough sleeping for EU nationals in the UK.
Answered by Kevin Foster
The Home Office works closely with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to reduce the incidence of rough sleeping among non-UK nationals. The Home Office Rough Sleeping Support Service (RSSS) gives real-time immigration information to local authorities and registered charities, to help them assess rough sleepers’ status and entitlements. Where individuals with unresolved immigration status cannot access the support they may be entitled to, the RSSS supports them to resolve their status and gain access to that support.
Migrants with leave under the family and human rights routes, and those who have been granted leave on the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) visa route as a British National (Overseas) status holder or a family member of a British National (Overseas) status holder, can apply, for free, to have their NRPF condition lifted by making a ‘change of condition’ application if they are destitute or at risk of destitution, if the welfare of their child is at risk due to their low income, or where there are other exceptional financial circumstances.
For those on other routes, we remain clear that councils and partners should exhaust all options within the law to support those who are unable to access statutory homelessness assistance as a result of their immigration status and to ensure everyone has a route off the street, including those with a NRPF condition.
Those who have no recourse to public funds due to not having a lawful immigration status, should seek to regularise their stay or leave the UK. The Voluntary Returns Service offers practical support for most foreign nationals who have decided they want to return home.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of how many migrants who lack full documentation have become homeless in each of the last two years for which figures are available.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
As part of the Homelessness Case Level Collection data (H-CLIC), local authorities are required to collect details of the nationality of those they have assessed as homeless. Local authorities are not required through H-CLIC to collect data on the documentation held by non-UK nationals who are homeless and rough sleeping.
As part of our annual rough sleeping snapshot, we also collect data on the nationality of those sleeping rough. Latest data reported that 25% of those found to be rough sleeping on a single night in 2021 were non-UK nationals - 20% (500) were from the EU and 5% (110) were non-EU. The nationality of 8% (200) was unknown.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to alleviate homelessness among EU nationals living in England.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Local housing authorities report their homelessness activities under Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996 to the Department by completing the quarterly Homelessness Case Level Collection (H-CLIC) statistical return. H-CLIC is an upload of all cases about statutory homelessness and the authority's activities within the legislative framework.
Figures from the latest H-CLIC data show that in England between March 2020 and April 2021, 15,140 EEA nationals were owed a homelessness prevention or relief duty. This is an 11% decrease from 2019/20.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of EU nationals living in England who have become homeless since the UK formally withdrew from the EU.
Answered by Lord Greenhalgh
Local housing authorities report their homelessness activities under Part 7 of the Housing Act 1996 to the Department by completing the quarterly Homelessness Case Level Collection (H-CLIC) statistical return. H-CLIC is an upload of all cases about statutory homelessness and the authority's activities within the legislative framework.
Figures from the latest H-CLIC data show that in England between March 2020 and April 2021, 15,140 EEA nationals were owed a homelessness prevention or relief duty. This is an 11% decrease from 2019/20.
Asked by: Paul Blomfield (Labour - Sheffield Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people with (a) settled and (b) pre-settled status have cited (a) work in the UK, (b) get hospital treatment, (c) claim benefits or tax credits, (d) get homelessness assistance or council housing, (e) open a bank or building society account, (f) get a loan or credit card, (g) another reason as their reason for requesting a share code to prove their status in each month since the EU settlement scheme became operational.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
Individuals granted pre-settled or settled status have had the option within the ‘view and prove your settled or pre-settled status’ service to share their status information for a variety of reasons since 30th September 2019. This is done by generating a ‘share code’ which can be given to a third party to provide them with time-limited access to the data. One of these options (‘work in the UK’) takes users to a separate Home Office service, which can also be used by individuals who have not been through the EU Settlement Scheme (holders of Biometric Residence Permits (BRP) and Biometric Residence Cards (BRC)).
The ability to share information via the online service(s) is entirely optional; EEA nationals can continue to rely on their passports or national ID cards until at least December 2020 to evidence their rights in the UK but can choose to use the online service if they wish. Those with a BRP/C can also continue to rely on their physical cards.
Data is collected on usage of the service for internal purposes, to help us make improvements to the service, and to inform how it is performing. Data relates to number of views on the service, rather than unique users, and it is not currently possible to identify whether those who go on to share their status have settled or pre-settled status.
Data on usage on the ‘view and prove’ service more generally will be published later this year, as part of the Home Office Transparency Data.
Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what equality impact assessment has been made of the extent to which each protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2009 has been allocated funding through voluntary organisations to support vulnerable EU nationals applying to the EU Settlement Scheme.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
Details of the grant funding and payment allocations remain commercial in confidence therefore the funding amount allocated, and the amounts to each voluntary organisation cannot be disclosed.
All grant funded organisations are required to submit quarterly returns, reporting on outcomes to the Home Office. The Home Office is currently evaluating the quarter two return. Consideration of the need and effectiveness of any further funding will be done thereafter.
A policy equality statement has been completed for the EU Settlement Scheme ensuring the scheme is accessible to all and does not discriminate based on any protected characteristic. The grant fund was open to any voluntary and community sector organisations.
The fund concentrates on delivering a service based on supporting vulnerabilities such as, but not limited to, homelessness, disability, age, victims of domestic violence and trafficking. The organisations that were successful in their bid for funding demonstrated their ability to provide practical support and outreach to the most vulnerable EEA citizens and family members of EEA citizens.
Funding was awarded based on expected numbers of vulnerable people that could be supported by the organisation, the geographical reach of the organisation and their ability to mobilise within the required timeframes.
Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will extend beyond March 2020 the period of funding for voluntary organisations to support vulnerable EU nationals in applying for the EU Settlement Scheme.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
Details of the grant funding and payment allocations remain commercial in confidence therefore the funding amount allocated, and the amounts to each voluntary organisation cannot be disclosed.
All grant funded organisations are required to submit quarterly returns, reporting on outcomes to the Home Office. The Home Office is currently evaluating the quarter two return. Consideration of the need and effectiveness of any further funding will be done thereafter.
A policy equality statement has been completed for the EU Settlement Scheme ensuring the scheme is accessible to all and does not discriminate based on any protected characteristic. The grant fund was open to any voluntary and community sector organisations.
The fund concentrates on delivering a service based on supporting vulnerabilities such as, but not limited to, homelessness, disability, age, victims of domestic violence and trafficking. The organisations that were successful in their bid for funding demonstrated their ability to provide practical support and outreach to the most vulnerable EEA citizens and family members of EEA citizens.
Funding was awarded based on expected numbers of vulnerable people that could be supported by the organisation, the geographical reach of the organisation and their ability to mobilise within the required timeframes.
Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans are in place to ensure that funding for voluntary organisations to support vulnerable EU nationals in applying to the EU Settlement Scheme is allocated adequately to geographical areas where individuals with certain protected characteristics are concentrated.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
Details of the grant funding and payment allocations remain commercial in confidence therefore the funding amount allocated, and the amounts to each voluntary organisation cannot be disclosed.
All grant funded organisations are required to submit quarterly returns, reporting on outcomes to the Home Office. The Home Office is currently evaluating the quarter two return. Consideration of the need and effectiveness of any further funding will be done thereafter.
A policy equality statement has been completed for the EU Settlement Scheme ensuring the scheme is accessible to all and does not discriminate based on any protected characteristic. The grant fund was open to any voluntary and community sector organisations.
The fund concentrates on delivering a service based on supporting vulnerabilities such as, but not limited to, homelessness, disability, age, victims of domestic violence and trafficking. The organisations that were successful in their bid for funding demonstrated their ability to provide practical support and outreach to the most vulnerable EEA citizens and family members of EEA citizens.
Funding was awarded based on expected numbers of vulnerable people that could be supported by the organisation, the geographical reach of the organisation and their ability to mobilise within the required timeframes.
Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much of the £9 million funding for voluntary organisations to support vulnerable EU nationals applying to the EU Settlement Scheme has been allocated; and how much funding has been allocated to each voluntary organisation.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
Details of the grant funding and payment allocations remain commercial in confidence therefore the funding amount allocated, and the amounts to each voluntary organisation cannot be disclosed.
All grant funded organisations are required to submit quarterly returns, reporting on outcomes to the Home Office. The Home Office is currently evaluating the quarter two return. Consideration of the need and effectiveness of any further funding will be done thereafter.
A policy equality statement has been completed for the EU Settlement Scheme ensuring the scheme is accessible to all and does not discriminate based on any protected characteristic. The grant fund was open to any voluntary and community sector organisations.
The fund concentrates on delivering a service based on supporting vulnerabilities such as, but not limited to, homelessness, disability, age, victims of domestic violence and trafficking. The organisations that were successful in their bid for funding demonstrated their ability to provide practical support and outreach to the most vulnerable EEA citizens and family members of EEA citizens.
Funding was awarded based on expected numbers of vulnerable people that could be supported by the organisation, the geographical reach of the organisation and their ability to mobilise within the required timeframes.
Asked by: Baroness Hamwee (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what arrangements they have in place to protect non-EU nationals resident in the UK who are victims of domestic abuse, and in particular to ensure access to homelessness support, refuge and benefits.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
This Government is committed to tackling domestic abuse against all women, regardless of their background or nationality. On 16 July this Government introduced the Domestic Abuse Bill which aims to improve protection and support for all victims irrespective of their immigration status.
Non-British victims residing in the UK are able to apply for support from authorities, many of whom will have statutory obligations to support victims. For individuals in the UK who are married, or partners of, British or settled sponsors and who claim to be victims of abuse, there is the option of applying for immediate crisis support under the Destitute Domestic Violence Concession (DDVC).
In addition, funding has been made available to support a range of support networks. In March £1,090,000 was made available specifically to be used to provide safe accommodation, and other support functions.
We are not complacent about our responses to domestic abuse. We strive to see what more can be done and we have committed to reviewing the support available to migrant victims of domestic abuse. The review will be launched over the summer and we aim to report progress of the review during the passage of the Bill.