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1251889

registered interest
date	13/11/2020
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Asylum and Immigration: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the potential merits of making (a) asylum and (b) other migration application processes available online during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Hornsey and Wood Green
tabling member printed	Catherine West
uin	91992
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/11/2020 answer text <p>UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) has worked at pace to ensure the application processes for our routes are Covid safe. Where we can, we have digitised the application process, but in some areas this is not possible.</p><p>Asylum in the UK should continue to be sought at the first available opportunity; on arrival, at a port of entry. Those who have failed to claim on arrival, or whose circumstances have changed since arrival, can lodge a claim at an in-country location – this is usually by appointment at the Asylum Intake Unit (AIU) in Croydon. The AIU has continued operate throughout the Covid 19 pandemic, however in line with Government Covid 19 guidance and restrictions, additional regional locations have been temporarily introduced to ensure asylum seekers are able to safely register their claims. In addition, the asylum screening and registration process has been temporarily abridged to minimise in person contact and limit travel required and remains under ongoing review.</p><p>Asylum claims registered at these temporary regional locations are processed in accordance with policy, fulfilling the UKs statutory obligations in relation to registering asylum claims in a Covid safe environment. The asylum registration process requires the enrolment of biometrics (photographs and fingerprints) to complete vital immigration and security checks against Home Office systems. This process requires attendance in person and so cannot be turned into an online process.</p><p>In relation to in-country further leave applications, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and government and public health restrictions put in place, the UK Visa and Citizenship Application Service (UKVCAS), which allows customers within the UK to enrol their biometrics, was suspended from the end of March to 1<sup>st</sup> June 2020.</p><p>As the UKVCAS service reopened, in parallel UKVI began reusing existing fingerprint biometrics for some customers which meant that instead of attending a service point in person to re-enrol, UKVI could reuse the fingerprints already recorded against a previous application. Once a customer has submitted their biometrics to UKVI, either through a physical appointment or verifying their identity in order that their existing biometrics can be reused, we are able to make a decision.</p><p>Finally, due to the digital nature of the EU Settlement Scheme, it has remained open throughout the pandemic for customers able to apply on line using the EU Exit: ID Document Check app”.</p><p>UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) has worked at pace to ensure the application processes for our routes are Covid safe. Where we can, we have digitised the application process, but in some areas this is not possible.</p><p>Asylum in the UK should continue to be sought at the first available opportunity; on arrival, at a port of entry. Those who have failed to claim on arrival, or whose circumstances have changed since arrival, can lodge a claim at an in-country location – this is usually by appointment at the Asylum Intake Unit (AIU) in Croydon. The AIU has continued operate throughout the Covid 19 pandemic, however in line with Government Covid 19 guidance and restrictions, additional regional locations have been temporarily introduced to ensure asylum seekers are able to safely register their claims. In addition, the asylum screening and registration process has been temporarily abridged to minimise in person contact and limit travel required and remains under ongoing review.</p><p>Asylum claims registered at these temporary regional locations are processed in accordance with policy, fulfilling the UKs statutory obligations in relation to registering asylum claims in a Covid safe environment. The asylum registration process requires the enrolment of biometrics (photographs and fingerprints) to complete vital immigration and security checks against Home Office systems. This process requires attendance in person and so cannot be turned into an online process.</p><p>In relation to in-country further leave applications, in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and government and public health restrictions put in place, the UK Visa and Citizenship Application Service (UKVCAS), which allows customers within the UK to enrol their biometrics, was suspended from the end of March to 1<sup>st</sup> June 2020.</p><p>As the UKVCAS service reopened, in parallel UKVI began reusing existing fingerprint biometrics for some customers which meant that instead of attending a service point in person to re-enrol, UKVI could reuse the fingerprints already recorded against a previous application. Once a customer has submitted their biometrics to UKVI, either through a physical appointment or verifying their identity in order that their existing biometrics can be reused, we are able to make a decision.</p><p>Finally, due to the digital nature of the EU Settlement Scheme, it has remained open throughout the pandemic for customers able to apply on line using the EU Exit: ID Document Check app”.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 18/11/2020 15:37:57 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	4523 label Biography information for Catherine West

1251896

registered interest
date	13/11/2020
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Visas: Appeals
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to investigate the immigration case of Adeleke Olanrewaju Okunade who successfully appealed in May 2020 against the refusal of his settlement visa application and who has not yet received that visa.
tabling member constituency	Blackburn
tabling member printed	Kate Hollern
uin	91975
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/11/2020 answer text <p>It is not appropriate to comment on individual cases.</p> answering member constituency Torbay answering member printed Kevin Foster question first answered 18/11/2020 17:10:51 answering member 4451 label Biography information for Kevin Foster
tabling member	4363 label Biography information for Kate Hollern

1251904

registered interest
date	13/11/2020
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Knives: Crime
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment her Department has made of trends in the level of knife crime in (a) Coventry North East constituency, (b) Coventry, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England in each of the last five years.
tabling member constituency	Coventry North East
tabling member printed	Colleen Fletcher
uin	91981
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/11/2020 answer text <p>There were 3157 offences involving a knife or sharp instrument recorded by West Midlands Police in year ending June 2020, an 11 per cent increase compared with the previous year, and a 54 per cent increase since 2015/16. Across England, there has been a 2 per cent decrease compared with the previous year, and a 57 per cent increase since 2015/16. These increases are thought to be partly a genuine increase and partly due to improvements in the police recording of these offences. Data for Coventry is not available from the Home Office.</p><p>We are taking determined action to tackle knife crime across the West Midlands and the rest of the country. This is why police funding is increasing by more than £1 billion this year. The amount of funding available to the policing system for 2020/21 will increase by more than £1.1 billion, totalling £15.2 billion. We have provided over £12.5m over two years to West Midlands to support their operational police response to serious violence, funding additional patrols in hotspot areas and the night-time economy.</p><p>We have tightened the law on knives through the Offensive Weapons Act 2019, which also introduced Knife Crime Prevention Orders. We have also recently completed a public consultation on the introduction of new Serious Violence Reduction Orders. While it is vital that the police have the resources and powers they need to tackle knife crime and serious violence, this is not a matter for the police alone. It is important that we also invest in prevention and early intervention to stop young people being drawn into violence in the first place. This is why we are investing over £200 million into early intervention projects to stop young people from committing violent crime in the first place. And it is why we are also investing £70 million in setting up 18 Violence Reduction Units (VRUs) across England and Wales to establish and implement a long term, multi-agency approach seeking to tackle the drivers of violent crime to prevent it from happening in the first place. Over the past 2 years, we have provided over £6.7m to the West Midlands VRU.</p> answering member constituency North West Hampshire answering member printed Kit Malthouse question first answered 18/11/2020 16:28:40 answering member 4495 label Biography information for Kit Malthouse
tabling member	4378 label Biography information for Colleen Fletcher

1251914

registered interest
date	13/11/2020
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Protest: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the removal of the protest exemption from The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) (No. 4) Regulations 2020 makes all protests attended by more than two people illegal during the November 2020 lockdown restrictions; what steps her Department is taking to protect the fundamental right to protest; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Broxbourne
tabling member printed	Sir Charles Walker
uin	91956
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/11/2020 answer text <p>The right to peaceful protest is one of the cornerstones of our democracy. However, in these unprecedented circumstances, any gathering risks spreading the disease, leading to more deaths, so it is vital we all play our part in controlling the virus.</p><p>People must follow the rules on meeting with others, which apply to all gatherings and therefore protests too. Any larger gatherings, save for very limited exemptions such as funerals, are unlawful. The current measures are time limited and are due to come to an end on 2 December.</p><p>As they have done throughout the pandemic, the police and local authorities will engage, explain and encourage people to follow the rules before moving on to enforce the law.</p> answering member constituency North West Hampshire answering member printed Kit Malthouse question first answered 18/11/2020 16:26:47 answering member 4495 label Biography information for Kit Malthouse
tabling member	1493 label Biography information for Sir Charles Walker

1251938

registered interest
date	13/11/2020
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Members: Correspondence
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she plans to respond to the letter of 31 July 2020 from the hon. Member for Manchester Gorton on appointments at Sopra Steria run UK visa centres.
tabling member constituency	Manchester, Gorton
tabling member printed	Afzal Khan
uin	92015
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/11/2020 answer text <p>The Hon. Member confirmed he would accept a local response from an official on this matter instead of a formal Ministerial response from the Home Secretary.</p><p>UK Visas and Immigration responded on 17 November 2020</p> answering member constituency Torbay answering member printed Kevin Foster question first answered 18/11/2020 17:13:55 answering member 4451 label Biography information for Kevin Foster
tabling member	4671 label Biography information for Afzal Khan

1251333

registered interest
date	12/11/2020
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Forensic Science: Metropolitan Police
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, for what reason her Department asked Sir John May in 1991 to investigate the Metropolitan Police Science Laboratory; whether that work included an examination of the evidence presented by John McCafferty during the prosecution of Paul Cleeland for the murder of Terry Clarke in 1972; and if she will publish the results of those investigations.
tabling member constituency	Folkestone and Hythe
tabling member printed	Damian Collins
uin	114834
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/11/2020 answer text <p>A review of any Home Office file holdings on this subject is currently being undertaken. It would not be appropriate to comment further while legal proceedings are ongoing.</p> answering member constituency North West Hampshire answering member printed Kit Malthouse question first answered 18/11/2020 16:24:50 answering member 4495 label Biography information for Kit Malthouse
tabling member	3986 label Biography information for Damian Collins

1251382

registered interest
date	12/11/2020
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Migrants: Sleeping Rough
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with her counterparts in the devolved Administrations on the new discretionary powers in the Immigration Rules to refuse or cancel a person’s permission to stay in the UK on the basis of that person’s rough sleeping; whether consent was sought from the devolved Administrations for the introduction or exercise of such a power where housing and homelessness is devolved; what consultation her Department conducted with police forces in (a) Scotland (b) Wales and (c) Northern Ireland on the introduction of that power; what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of existing levels of co-ordination between police forces in England and the other UK nations in implementing that power; and what team in her Department leads on the implementation of that power.
tabling member constituency	Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East
tabling member printed	Stuart C McDonald
uin	114916
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/11/2020 answer text <p>Immigration is a reserved matter. The new Immigration Rules make provision for the refusal or cancellation of permission to stay in the UK on the basis of rough sleeping. The new rule will apply on a discretionary basis to non-EEA nationals from 1 December 2020 and to newly arriving EEA nationals from 1 January 2021. The provision will be used sparingly and only where individuals refuse to engage with the range of support mechanisms available and are repeatedly engaged in persistent anti-social behaviour.</p><p>Tackling rough sleeping is not a primary responsibility for the police unless there is crime or anti-social behaviour perpetrated by a person who is sleeping rough. The police rely upon integrated support to be in place across relevant partner agencies and services to help rough sleepers move off the streets.</p><p>The Home Office and the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government are working together to encourage local authorities and approved charities to resolve the immigration status of eligible rough sleepers and unlock access to any benefits and entitlements that rough sleepers may be eligible for.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp grouped question UIN 114917 question first answered 17/11/2020 16:53:10 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	4393 label Biography information for Stuart C McDonald

1251385

registered interest
date	12/11/2020
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Migrants: Sleeping Rough
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with (a) housing and (b) homelessness charities on the new discretionary powers in the Immigration Rules to refuse or cancel a person’s permission to stay in the UK on the basis of that person’s rough sleeping, and how she plans to work with those charities in relation to use of that power.
tabling member constituency	Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East
tabling member printed	Stuart C McDonald
uin	114917
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/11/2020 answer text <p>Immigration is a reserved matter. The new Immigration Rules make provision for the refusal or cancellation of permission to stay in the UK on the basis of rough sleeping. The new rule will apply on a discretionary basis to non-EEA nationals from 1 December 2020 and to newly arriving EEA nationals from 1 January 2021. The provision will be used sparingly and only where individuals refuse to engage with the range of support mechanisms available and are repeatedly engaged in persistent anti-social behaviour.</p><p>Tackling rough sleeping is not a primary responsibility for the police unless there is crime or anti-social behaviour perpetrated by a person who is sleeping rough. The police rely upon integrated support to be in place across relevant partner agencies and services to help rough sleepers move off the streets.</p><p>The Home Office and the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government are working together to encourage local authorities and approved charities to resolve the immigration status of eligible rough sleepers and unlock access to any benefits and entitlements that rough sleepers may be eligible for.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp grouped question UIN 114916 question first answered 17/11/2020 16:53:10 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	4393 label Biography information for Stuart C McDonald

1251405

registered interest
date	12/11/2020
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Asylum: Military Bases
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what Government Departments and agencies she has consulted on potential sites for asylum accommodation; what sites she has under consideration; and whether she plans to use additional Ministry of Defence sites for asylum accommodation in the 2020-21 financial year.
tabling member constituency	Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East
tabling member printed	Stuart C McDonald
uin	114918
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/11/2020 answer text <p>The current global pandemic has presented us with significant challenges when it comes to the provision of asylum accommodation. This has included the need to source sufficient accommodation to meet demand.</p><p>Following a review of available government property, the Ministry of Defence agreed to temporarily hand over two of their sites in Kent and Pembrokeshire which are now being used to house asylum seekers.</p><p>Whilst this is contingency accommodation used on a temporary basis, our primary focus remains to ensure that we maintain sufficient capacity to meet our statutory obligations during these unprecedented times and will continue to examine further opportunities which may be utilised if necessary.</p> answering member constituency Croydon South answering member printed Chris Philp question first answered 17/11/2020 16:54:16 answering member 4503 label Biography information for Chris Philp
tabling member	4393 label Biography information for Stuart C McDonald

1251498

registered interest
date	12/11/2020
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Visas: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of the restrictions on marriage services may have on those individuals who required a spousal visa during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Cambridge
tabling member printed	Daniel Zeichner
uin	114912
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/11/2020 answer text <p>The Home Office has put in place a range of measures to support those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic; this includes those who are currently in the UK as a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner.</p><p>A person with six months’ leave as a fiancé, fiancée or proposed civil partner whose wedding or civil ceremony has been delayed due to coronavirus may request additional time to stay, also known as exceptional assurance, and extend their leave until their wedding or civil partnership takes place.</p><p>Otherwise, applicants can apply to extend their stay for a further six months to allow their ceremony to take place. The current family Immigration Rules allow a fiancé(e) or proposed civil partner to apply for an extension of leave if there is good reason for their wedding or civil partnership not taking place during the initial six-month period of leave to enter. Cancellation of a wedding due to COVID-19 will be considered a good reason under this policy. Further information is set out for customers on GOV.UK and is available here: <a href="https://eur01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gov.uk%2Fguidance%2Fcoronavirus-covid-19-advice-for-uk-visa-applicants-and-temporary-uk-residents%23if-youre-applying-to-enter-the-uk-or-remain-on-the-basis-of-family-or-private-life&amp;data=04%7C01%7CPairavy.Santhakunesan%40homeoffice.gov.uk%7C9733a5cea1774963d72508d887bc8068%7Cf24d93ecb2914192a08af182245945c2%7C0%7C0%7C637408590957943639%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&amp;sdata=%2F9oP%2FItnceDt9dctRXOzWoDBAXxxIIShf9D0WLaVYuY%3D&amp;reserved=0" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-advice-for-uk-visa-applicants-and-temporary-uk-residents#if-youre-applying-to-enter-the-uk-or-remain-on-the-basis-of-family-or-private-life</a></p> answering member constituency Torbay answering member printed Kevin Foster question first answered 18/11/2020 14:19:07 answering member 4451 label Biography information for Kevin Foster
tabling member	4382 label Biography information for Daniel Zeichner