Tag: Carol Monaghan

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2016-06-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many refugees currently housed in the refugee camp in Calais have immediate family members already resident in the UK; and what steps are being taken to reunite those families.

James Brokenshire

The French NGO France Terre d’Asile (FTDA) has carried out a survey of children in the camps in the Calais area, which identified, within the scope of the survey, 43 children with claimed family links to the UK. We are working closely with the French Government and FTDA to ensure that where family links are established, transfers take place efficiently under the Dublin Regulation.

The transfer of cases deemed the responsibility of the UK on the basis of family unity provisions contained in the Dublin Regulation can take place relatively quickly and we have resources in place to facilitate this. An individual must first, however, claim asylum in France or another European state participating in the Regulation for the process to begin.

Under the UK-France Joint Declaration of 20 August 2015, the UK and France have committed to ensuring that the provisions of the Dublin III Regulation are used efficiently and effectively. To assist the handling of such cases, the two Governments have established a permanent official contact group, agreed single points of contact within respective Dublin Units and we seconded an asylum expert to the French administration to facilitate the improvement of all stages of the process.

The UK and France are running regular joint communication campaigns in northern France which inform unaccompanied children and others of their right to claim asylum in France and of the family reunion process.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people with spouses or partners with UK citizenship have been refused entry to the UK in each of the last five years.

James Brokenshire

The available information is shown in the attached table.

Information on spouses or partners of UK citizens is not available as it is not held on centrally collated statistical databases and could only be produced at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case files.

The latest quarterly Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas are published in ‘Immigration Statistics, July – September 2015’, available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-statistics

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2016-06-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what plans his Department has to help fill potential skills shortages in junior doctor and teaching positions resulting from the £35,000 income requirement for settlement of Tier 2 skilled workers over the next five years.

Nick Boles

Health Education England is the NHS body responsible for planning and commissioning training places for medical and non-medical NHS staff. Health Education England do not accept that the £35,000 income requirement will lead to a skills shortage in junior doctors and their current workforce plan for medical training commissions forecasts an increase of over 11,000 consultants and doctors by 2020.

Applicants that have been granted Tier 2 visas enabling them to take on work or training within the UK cannot apply for settlement (Indefinite Leave to Remain) until they have been resident for 5 years. Whilst it is recognised that basic starting salaries for junior doctors may be below the £35,000 threshold, junior doctors also receive salary allowances. By the end of the 5 year period most will have progressed sufficiently and are likely to be above the required threshold, ensuring that only the brightest and best may apply to settle.

In respect of teaching positions, secondary education teachers from non EEA countries in the subjects of maths, chemistry and physics are on the shortage occupation list and thus are exempt from the £35,000 threshold.

At a national level we are retaining and recruiting the teachers we need to deliver educational excellence everywhere. We have more teachers in our schools than ever before and the number of teachers has kept pace with changing numbers of pupils. There are more than 450,000 teachers in schools throughout England – up more than 13,000 since 2010. We recognise, however, that the strengthening economy and growth in pupil numbers make the situation more challenging and that this is more acute in certain subjects and particular schools or areas of the country.

That is why; we have expanded schemes like Teach First and let schools take the lead in training the next generation of teachers; we are investing over £1.3 billion up to 2020 to attract new teachers into the profession and we continue to offer generous bursaries of up to £30,000 tax free in priority subjects.

Last year we announced a £67 million investment in STEM teaching in England to recruit up to 2,500 additional maths and physics teachers over the next 5 years as well as providing subject knowledge training in maths and physics to 15,000 non-specialist serving teachers.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people with spouses or partners with UK citizenship have been granted a visa to enter the UK in each of the last five years.

James Brokenshire

The available information is shown in the table attached.

Information on spouses or partners of UK citizens is not available as it is not held on centrally collated statistical databases and could only be produced at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case files.

The latest quarterly Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas are published in ‘Immigration Statistics, July – September 2015’, available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-statistics

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2016-06-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will take steps to ensure STEM-qualified teachers are exempt from the £35,000 income threshold for settlement for non-EU workers.

Nick Gibb

The Government announced in 2012 that from 6 April 2016, Tier 2 visa holders who apply for settlement in the UK will be required to meet a minimum annual salary requirement of £35,000. Secondary education teachers from non-EU countries in the subjects of mathematics, chemistry and physics are on the shortage occupation list and thus are exempt from the £35,000 threshold.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people with spouses or partners with UK citizenship have applied to enter the UK in each of the last five years.

James Brokenshire

The available information is shown in the attached table.

Information on spouses or partners of UK citizens is not available as it is not held on centrally collated statistical databases and could only be produced at disproportionate cost by examination of individual case files.

The latest quarterly Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas are published in ‘Immigration Statistics, July – September 2015’, available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-statistics

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2016-06-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure schools continue to recruit and retain non-EU nationals in STEM subjects who do not meet the £35,000 income threshold for settlement.

Nick Gibb

The Government announced in 2012 that from 6 April 2016, Tier 2 visa holders who apply for settlement in the UK will be required to meet a minimum annual salary requirement of £35,000. Secondary education teachers from non-EU countries in the subjects of mathematics, chemistry and physics are on the shortage occupation list and thus are exempt from the £35,000 threshold.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people with spouses or partners with UK citizenship have been removed from the UK in each of the last five years.

James Brokenshire

The information requested is not routinely collected and could be provided only by examining individual case records, which would result in disproportionate cost.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2016-10-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to raise public awareness of (a) pancreatic cancer and (b) other cancers for which symptoms can be non-specific and have similarities to other benign conditions.

David Mowat

Public Health England’s (PHE) Be Clear on Cancer campaigns are designed to raise the public’s awareness of specific cancer symptoms, encourage people with those symptoms to go to the doctor and diagnose cancer at an earlier stage. An early visit to a general practice can make a cancer more treatable, and thereby improve cancer survival rates. These campaigns are delivered by PHE in partnership with the Department and NHS England. There are a number of cancers, including those where symptoms can be non-specific, which are not covered by ‘Be Clear on Cancer’ explicitly.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Carol Monaghan on 2016-02-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will estimate the change in that part of her Department’s budget which is allocated to free school meals that will result from discontinuation of universal infant free school meals; and whether such a change would trigger a consequential change in the payment to devolved administrations under the Barnett formula.

Mr Sam Gyimah

Universal infant free school meals have been a great success, with over 1.3 million additional infants enjoying a nutritious, free meal at lunchtime and parents saving hundreds of pounds a year. The Chancellor made it clear at the spending review in the autumn that, in line with the Conservative Party’s manifesto commitment, this policy will be protected for the duration of the Parliament. It costs around £600 million a year in England, with proportionate funding going to the devolved administrations under the Barnett formula.