Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to support the Community Sponsorship scheme for refugees.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Immigration White Paper, published on 12 May 2025, announced a review of our existing refugee sponsorship and resettlement schemes to develop a more cost-effective and sustainable framework which will deliver better outcomes for refugees and the communities in which they live.
Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to introduce a (a) fast-track and (b) expedited process for applications to the Displaced Talent Mobility Scheme for people seeking refuge from (i) war zones and (ii) crisis situations.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Immigration White Paper, published on 12 May, announced a review of the UK’s existing refugee resettlement and sponsorship schemes. This will ensure that there is a framework which will allow businesses, universities and communities to sponsor refugees to live, work and study in the UK. Further details will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many asylum seekers and refugees have been dispersed by the Home Office to Northern Ireland in each of the past five years, and how many from Syria, Afghanistan, Hong Kong and Ukraine in the relevant official schemes.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The number of supported asylum seekers and refugees in Northern Ireland in each of the past five years were as follows:
Immigration group | As at 31 March 2021 | As at 31 March 2022 | As at 31 March 2023 | As at 31 March 2024 | As at 31 March 2025 |
Supported Asylum seekers | 912 | 1,404 | 3,030 | 2,765 | 2,637 |
Afghan Resettlement Programme | Scheme not open | Data not available | Data not available | 203 | 305 |
Homes for Ukraine (arrivals) | Scheme not open | Data not available | Data not available | 1,502 | 1,949 |
Please note that Asylum seekers are accommodated in Northern Ireland only if they apply for asylum there. These figures are a snapshot as at 31 March for the last 5 years.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
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 lessons learned from international examples of the use of limited humanitarian visas to allow people to apply for asylum from their country of origin.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
The UK has a proud history of providing protection for those who need it through a number of safe and legal routes. However, there is no provision within our Immigration Rules for someone to be allowed to travel to the UK to seek asylum or temporary refuge. Whilst we sympathise with people in many difficult situations around the world, we are not bound to consider asylum claims from the very large numbers of people overseas who might like to come here. Those who need international protection should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach – that is the fastest route to safety.
The UK continues to welcome refugees and people in need through our existing global resettlement schemes which include the UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS), Community Sponsorship and the Mandate Resettlement Scheme. Alongside these schemes, we operate specific schemes for those fleeing Ukraine and Afghanistan, and an immigration route for British National (overseas) status holders from Hong Kong.
There are additional safe and legal routes for people to come to the UK should they wish to join family members here, work or study.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of using limited humanitarian visas to allow people to apply for asylum from their country of origin.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
The UK has a proud history of providing protection for those who need it through a number of safe and legal routes. However, there is no provision within our Immigration Rules for someone to be allowed to travel to the UK to seek asylum or temporary refuge. Whilst we sympathise with people in many difficult situations around the world, we are not bound to consider asylum claims from the very large numbers of people overseas who might like to come here. Those who need international protection should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach – that is the fastest route to safety.
The UK continues to welcome refugees and people in need through our existing global resettlement schemes which include the UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS), Community Sponsorship and the Mandate Resettlement Scheme. Alongside these schemes, we operate specific schemes for those fleeing Ukraine and Afghanistan, and an immigration route for British National (overseas) status holders from Hong Kong.
There are additional safe and legal routes for people to come to the UK should they wish to join family members here, work or study.
Asked by: Phil Brickell (Labour - Bolton West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans her Department has to issue guidance to (a) refugees and (b) BN(O) visa holders in the United Kingdom on the potential impact of its White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published 12 May 2025, on the pathways to (i) citizenship and (ii) indefinite leave to remain.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The White Paper commits to a review of our existing refugee sponsorship and resettlement schemes. Further information on the reviews will be provided in due course.
The Government is committed to supporting members of the Hong Kong community who have relocated to the UK and those who may come here in future.
Further details of all measures announced in the Immigration White Paper will be set out in the normal way in due course. Where necessary, measures will be subject to consultation.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds Central and Headingley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to provide an additional resettlement quota for Afghan refugees in Pakistan identified by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees for resettlement.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Between 2021 and March 2025, over 34,000 individuals have been resettled and relocated through the Afghan Resettlement Programme. The latest immigration statistics can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-system-statistics-year-ending-march-2025.
The Government’s priority remains the resettlement and relocation of those already identified as eligible but who have not yet travelled.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Yazidis have been resettled to the UK from (a) Iraq and (b) Syria in each year since 2014.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The UK partners with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to resettle refugees in accordance with their standard resettlement criteria.
Individual ethnic and religious backgrounds are not part of this consideration, and the Home Office does not therefore collate or publish this information.
Asked by: Suella Braverman (Conservative - Fareham and Waterlooville)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department has made an estimate of the proportion of UNHCR recognised refugees by country that would be resettled in the UK under the Restoring control over the immigration system: white paper.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The Immigration White Paper, published on 12 May 2025, announced new measures on a wide range of issues, including the rules on citizenship and refugee settlement, further details of which will be set out in due course.
Asked by: Colum Eastwood (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Foyle)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of establishing a resettlement scheme for Palestinian refugees seeking to join family members resident in the UK.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave on 13 March to Question 35970.