Tag: Baroness Hamwee

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hamwee on 2016-09-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what training staff at Tinsley House have received to ensure that they are able to work with children.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The training requirements for Home Office, custodial service provider and NHS England staff at Tinsley House pre-departure accommodation are equivalent to those for Cedars.

As set out in Detention Services Order 19/2012 ‘Detention and Escorting Safeguarding Children policy’, updated in May 2016, all staff working with children receive suitable training, which must be at least equivalent to Tier 1 of the Home Office ‘Keeping Children Safe’.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hamwee on 2016-09-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that children subject to immigration control are not separated from their family or guardian during the process unless there are safeguarding or welfare concerns.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

For immigration purposes children may only be separated from their parents where it is necessary and proportionate to do so and after having regard to the need to safeguard and promote the children’s welfare.

Decisions on family separations are taken in line with published guidance in the Home Office Enforcement Instructions and Guidance at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/removal-actions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hamwee on 2016-09-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether pre-departure accommodation at Tinsley House will be equipped for families with children and will provide facilities for children to a similar level as those at Cedars family accommodation centre; and when Tinsley House will be ready for use.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

Tinsley House is currently under going refurbishment. This includes the facilities identified for the new pre-departure accommodation. The apartment based facilities will be similar to those provided at Cedars family accommodation centre.

These facilities will include a children’s play area in the family reception area; a domestic kitchen to allow families to cook for themselves; and improvements to the outside courtyard and the separate entrance to the proposed pre departure accommodation.

The important assistance to families preparing to return to their home country, provided at Cedars, will remain in place at the new pre-departure accommodation. Cedars will remain open to enable a managed transition to the new location to take place, and Barnardo’s will continue to provide welfare support at Cedars. The timetable for the opening of pre-departure accommodation at Tinsley House is still being finalised.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hamwee on 2016-09-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to put in place a specialist escort team to deal exclusively with family returns.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

Specialist family escort teams were introduced in 2014 and are part of the family returns removal process.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hamwee on 2016-09-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have commenced negotiations for the disposal of the Cedars family accommodation centre property.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

On 21 July 2016, the Government announced its decision to close the Cedars pre-departure accommodation facility. The Cedars property is held on a leasehold basis. We have not yet commenced formal discussions with the landlord over the future of the site.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hamwee on 2016-10-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are aware of the presence of British citizens, particularly British children, in the La Linière refugee camp outside Dunkirk.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The Government is not aware of any British citizens, including children, residing in the La Linière migrant camp.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hamwee on 2016-10-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps, if any, they are taking to provide assistance to British citizens, particularly British children, in La Linière refugee camp outside Dunkirk.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The Government is not aware of any British citizens, including children, residing in the La Linière migrant camp.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hamwee on 2016-10-03.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proposals they have, if any, to provide assistance to British citizens, particularly British children, in La Linière refugee camp outside Dunkirk.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The Government is not aware of any British citizens, including children, residing in the La Linière migrant camp.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hamwee on 2016-10-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government why, in the guidance for Home Office staff published on 9 September, for the purposes of assessing the mental health of an immigration detainee and of Rule 35 reports regarding particularly vulnerable detainees, a distinction is made between torture by state actors and torture by non-state actors.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The definition of torture adopted for the “adults at risk in immigration detention” policy is in line with that set out in the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT) although, for the purposes of the policy, it has been extended to cover serious harm inflicted by terrorist groups exploiting instability or civil war to hold territory.

The Government adopted this definition as it most accurately reflects the need to protect those who are most likely to be adversely affected by detention – that is, those who have been harmed by the state, or by an organisation exercising similar control, and for whom detention is most likely to be redolent of the harm they have suffered.

In order to be consistent, the same definition was applied to the reporting system in rule 35 of the Detention Centre Rules 2001 under which doctors working in immigration removal centres are required to report concerns that a detainee may have been the victim of torture. This has no effect on the requirement also in rule 35 for such doctors to report where a detainee’s health is likely to be injuriously affected by continued detention or the conditions of detention.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Hamwee on 2015-11-11.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many (1) parents of a minor, (2) siblings of a minor, and (3) other persons, were granted, on the basis of exceptional compelling, compassionate circumstances outside the Immigration Rules, a family reunion visa for reunion with a family member in the UK with refugee leave or humanitarian protection, in each year from 2011 to date; and from which countries those persons have come.

Lord Bates

Family reunion applications are considered within the scope of the Immigration Rules. Under these Rules, only pre-existing families are eligible for family reunion i.e. spouse, civil partner, unmarried/same sex partner and minor children who formed part of the family unit at the time the sponsor (the person granted protection in the UK) fled to seek asylum.

Family reunion visas are available to help families that become fragmented. Family reunion is intended to allow family members who formed part of the family unit before the refugee fled their country of origin, to reunite in the UK.

The number of Family reunion visas issued and the country of application from 2011 to date can be found in the table below. It is not possible to break down the data to the applicant’s relationship with the individual that has already gained asylum in the UK.

To note: ‘*’ appears where there are less than three applications.

	Applications issued
Country of application	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015 (Jan-Jun)
Albania	*	*	*	5	–
Algeria	–	–	*	–	5
Bahrain	*	15	10	5	5
Bangladesh	–	10	5	10	10
Belarus	*	5	–	5	–
Belgium	–	5	5	–	5
Burma	20	25	5	5	5
Cameroon	60	40	30	55	15
Canada	*	*	*	–	*
China	25	15	20	20	10
Congo (Dem. Rep.)	80	55	70	45	15
Cuba	–	*	–	5	–
Denmark	–	*	5	–	5
Egypt	20	50	145	135	120
Ethiopia	685	475	450	295	85
France	5	–	5	*	–
Gambia	40	40	40	80	50
Georgia	–	5	5	*	–
Germany	*	–	5	–	–
Ghana	15	25	25	30	10
Greece	*	5	5	10	5
India	45	30	30	25	15
Iran	190	55	*	–	–
Iraq	–	–	*	35	30
Irish Republic	*	5	–	–	–
Israel	5	*	10	15	–
Italy	5	5	5	5	*
Ivory Coast	–	–	–	10	*
Jamaica	5	–	–	*	–
Jordan	20	40	95	385	60
Kazakhstan	*	*	–	–	–
Kenya	160	160	105	80	20
Kuwait	25	25	30	40	40
Lebanon	10	110	280	405	260
Libya	*	*	5	5	*
Morocco	–	–	*	10	5
Mozambique	*	*	–	–	–
Namibia	*	*	*	*	–
Nepal	10	–	10	15	5
Netherlands	*	*	5	5	–
New Zealand	*	–	–	–	–
Nigeria	5	10	10	10	5
No biometrics	775	595	740	630	80
Pakistan	345	305	360	525	300
Portugal	–	–	5	–	–
Qatar	–	*	5	*	5
Romania	–	–	5	–	–
Russian Federation	5	5	*	10	–
Rwanda	5	5	5	5	–
Saudi Arabia	5	10	10	25	40
Senegal	5	5	5	5	5
Sierra Leone	35	10	15	20	5
South Africa	55	25	20	25	10
Sri Lanka	305	250	305	220	105
Sudan	215	380	360	355	230
Sweden	–	5	5	*	*
Switzerland	–	–	5	–	*
Syria	235	105	5	–	–
Tanzania	15	5	10	10	5
Trinidad and Tobago	–	–	–	*	5
Tunisia	5	5	–	*	–
Turkey	55	215	330	550	215
Uganda	85	135	225	195	45
Ukraine	*	5	*	*	–
United Arab Emirates	25	100	120	75	70
United States	*	–	5	5	5
Uzbekistan	10	5	5	*	–
Vietnam	5	–	–	5	*
Zambia	10	*	–	10	*
Zimbabwe	640	265	145	110	25
Grand Total	4305	3670	4120	4540	1940

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