The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-03-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department sets targets related to the closing of benefit claims of people referred to the work programme.
Priti Patel
There are no targets set for providers in relation to the closing of benefit claims, though for a job to be eligible for outcome payments, providers must support people into enough work to take them off out-of-work benefits.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-04-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many claims for asylum from people from Yemen were refused in (a) 2014 and (b) 2015.
James Brokenshire
There were 9 and 50 grants of asylum or an alternative form of protection, at initial decision, to Yemeni nationals in 2014 and 2015 respectively.
There were 34 and 43 refusals of asylum or an alternative form of protection, at initial decision, to Yemeni nationals in 2014 and 2015 respectively.
The Home Office publishes figures on asylum initial decisions by nationality in the quarterly Immigration Statistics release. A copy of the latest release, Immigration Statistics, October to December 2015, is available from:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-october-to-december-2015
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-06-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans her Department has to allow EU citizens resident in the UK to be able to continue to live in the UK.
James Brokenshire
As the Prime Minister has said, there will be no immediate changes in the circumstances of European nationals currently residing in the UK.
Under current arrangements EU nationals do not need to apply for a residence card or a permanent residence card in order to establish their free movement rights and responsibilities.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-09-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the service standard is for cases handled by the Complex Casework Directorate.
Mr Robert Goodwill
The Complex Casework Directorate has a published service standard for in country Administrative Reviews. The target is to decide 95% of all applications within 28 days.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-10-20.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether his Department plans to (a) reprint and (b) revise the Start4Life leaflets covering breastfeeding, bottle feeding and early child nutrition.
Nicola Blackwood
Public Health England will continue to reprint Start4Life leaflets on breastfeeding (in a simpler format) and bottle feeding, and will be revising the early child nutrition leaflet to incorporate new guidance from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition, when available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2015-11-18.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with the European Commission on the abolition of Value Added Tax on sanitary products.
Mr David Gauke
Following the recent Parliamentary debate on this issue, I have written to the European Commission and other Member States setting out the Government’s view that Member States should have full discretion over what rate of VAT they can apply to sanitary products, and that this should be considered in the context of the Commission’s ambition to produce an Action Plan on VAT initiatives in 2016.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-02-23.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to provide certified copies of identity documents to visa applicants to support their applications to undertake an approved English language test.
James Brokenshire
There is no intention to change the current policy with regards to identity checks for Secure English Language Testing (SELT). Photocopies, whether certified or not, are not accepted when a candidate sits a test. Only original and valid documents are acceptable. This will allow test centre staff to confirm that the document is genuine and relates to the individual who is sitting the test.
The only acceptable forms of identification in the UK are:
• a passport or travel document;
• a EU Identity Card;
• a Biometric Residence Permit.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-03-21.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department plans to include non-prescription incontinence pads, maternity pads and breast pads used by breastfeeding mothers in the definition of sanitary products for the purposes of zero rating under VAT.
Mr David Gauke
The zero rate of VAT will apply to any sanitary protection product that is designed and marketed solely for the absorption of collection of menstrual flow or lochia, including:
Eligible incontinence products, for sale to disabled people, are already zero rated.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-04-14.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people from Yemen claimed asylum in the UK in 2014.
James Brokenshire
There were 66 and 111 asylum applications from Yemeni nationals in 2014 and 2015, respectively.
The Home Office publishes figures on asylum applications by nationality in the quarterly Immigration Statistics release. A copy of the latest release, Immigration Statistics, October to December 2015, is available from:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-statistics-october-to-december-2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-06-27.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what training her Department provides to immigration officers on handling asylum cases in which a claimant has been raped or sexually abused.
James Brokenshire
The Home Office is committed to treating all those who seek asylum with dignity and respect, including those whose fears may be based on sexual violence or gender related persecution.
All general Immigration Officers receive training in Modern Slavery issues and those based at dedicated Asylum Intake Unit where claims may be first registered also receive training in sexual violence awareness. However, all asylum claims are dealt with by specially trained caseworkers rather than Immigration Officers.
The current training and support available for asylum caseworkers includes a UNHCR endorsed Foundation Training Programme, which covers all aspects of the asylum interview and decision making process, including dealing sensitively with vulnerable claimants.
Furthermore we have also worked closely with stakeholders, such as, the Refugee Council, to develop a dedicated referral process, so that women are formally referred to special counselling services where they disclose issues relating to sexual violence as part of their asylum claim.