Tag: Home Office

The press release issued by the Home Office on 27 February 2024.

We need to talk about immigration.

Now even saying those words is enough to send some eyebrows soaring and some voices muttering – which is crazy.

Because the conversation around this subject has become highly polarised and highly toxic.

And that is really bad news – because if we can’t do balanced and thoughtful conversation, we can’t do balanced and thoughtful policy making.

And today, I want to explain why all of us must be doing balanced policy making.

Let me first say a word about this wonderful city of New York. It is a fitting venue for this speech, it’s been a major hub for immigration into the USA for centuries.

And the Carnegie Council are the perfect hosts, with a proud history of setting the global agenda and a mission of “using the power of ethics to build a better world”.

Let me talk about my country.

British society has been moulded, developed, and enhanced by centuries of immigration.

And without it, the UK would not be the place it is today.

I am descended from immigrants on both sides of my family. My mum came to the UK to work in our National Health Service from Sierra Leone around 1966 and my father’s family from Normandy in 1066.

British historians give a little chuckle and everyone else is a bit lost on that one.

My country may be a small, wet and windy island. But we are internationalist at heart, we’re a multi-racial country – we have a history of being welcoming and generous.

And our global heritage and connections can also be seen in our language, food, culture, the representatives in our sporting teams, and the representatives in our government.

The ethnic diversity we display is so longstanding and commonplace it rarely merits a mention.

The UK’s post-Brexit legal immigration system enables us to control immigration – and to welcome people from every corner of the Earth that have the right skills and the right talent to support our public services and boost our economy.

And of course, well-managed immigration should also ensure that the people who come to a country also share our values and our standards.

I’m very proud of that the fact UK also plays its part in helping those fleeing conflict.

In recent times we have offered a safe and legal route to over half a million people seeking refuge and their families since 2015. They include but not limited to people from Ukraine, Hong Kong, Afghanistan, and Syria.

And we support community sponsorship for refugees and have initiatives to support displaced people in accessing our labour markets.

The UK also invests heavily in international development and aid because it is an investment in security, in building future trading opportunities, and in supporting future global stability and of course while I have explained some of the benefits of immigration it is important to recognise immigration can also cause tensions, challenges and sometime problems.

Talking about myself again, one of my favourite subjects.

But we cannot and must not hide from the tensions and problems associated with immigration.

My first role as an elected politician was on the London Assembly.

I sat next to someone who had also been elected by the population in the most diverse and international city in the world – even though he represented what was basically a neo-fascist political party.

He was elected in large part because immigration in east London in particular had been badly mishandled and mainstream politicians had ducked the issues about the community tension that that immigration had caused.

That’s the potential risk if we get this issue wrong.

We need to look at the impact on GDP, and culture, and also the pressures on cohesion, housing, and public services.

We can’t just talk about the amazing positive impact of NHS staff like my mum – and other immigrants – but then not discuss the sometimes unpredictable and increased challenges for public services.

And we must recognise that while the benefits of immigration are typically widespread, dispersed, the downsides, pressures and challenges can be felt very locally, and can create real hotspots.

This has been true throughout time. We saw it in the Huguenots coming to east London, we saw it in the Notting Hill riots in 1958.

New York, our host today, is a world-famous metropolis, hugely enhanced by its cosmopolitan nature and the mix of the people that live here. But it too has faced big tensions because of unplanned immigration. American politicians cannot, and must not ignore that.

We’ve got to recognise the nature of immigration is international by definition.

People move in the modern era for the same reasons they always have: physical safety and economic opportunity.

There is nothing new about going where they believe the streets are paved with gold.

But this phenomena has been accelerated, amplified by modern technology and transport.

Journeys that used to be difficult to arrange and potentially take years to make can now be done very quickly and arranged on a mobile phone.

And if it is an illegal journey, it can be facilitated by a people-smuggler who is in neither the country of origin nor destination.

Likewise, the fact that people send so much money back home – both formally and informally – means that a whole family can harness one person’s risk-taking. Global remittance flows exceeded $840 billion last year.

Altogether, there are now around 281 million migrants, accounting for about 3.6 per cent of the global population, and of that number well over 100 million forcibly displaced people.

And the momentum is very much in the direction of even greater travel  flows whether for economic reasons, or because of conflict, climate change, natural disaster, hunger, or other factors.

And counterintuitively an initial increase in a poor person’s wealth actually makes them more likely to move, because they have acquired the financial means to do so.

We must all expect larger and larger numbers of new arrivals, whether they are in transit to another country or seeking a permanent home.

And of course economic migrants often spread their wings to places far from their home.

Whilst well intentioned, blithely insisting that wealthier countries can simply take higher and higher numbers is I’m afraid deluded. It is neither economically nor socially sustainable.

We often pay too little attention to the impact of migration on those countries from which people are leaving in large numbers.

A talent drain can be devastating have a devastating effect, causing a flight of capital, huge gaps in the workforce, and security issues in those countries.

It can be extremely expensive for countries to train professionals only to see them then take their skills elsewhere, for what they perceive to be a more lucrative lifestyle.

In receiving countries, citizens will suffer if their country fails to invest in skills and training and then plugs those gaps with immigration.

I also feel there is something distasteful, perhaps grubby about concluding that certain jobs are beneath our citizens and should be left exclusively to be done by immigrants.

But as I said, in a very polarised debate it is important to leave a space for nuance, as some countries urgently need an injection of labour and skills.

Countries with ageing populations may need immigration to support their economic needs. Some are already adjusting their immigration policies accordingly.

Even in those circumstances the migration needs to be legal, predictable and well managed.

While many immigrants move to a new country full of excitement and hope, seeking a new prosperous life, others do so with a heavy heart, because circumstances in their home countries have forced the move upon them.

I am very keen to see the vast majority of the Ukrainians who have taken refuge in the UK return home…

…emphatically not because they aren’t welcome, because they very much are but because I know it’s what they want.

I hope that they will look back on their time in the UK with immense fondness, and affection, but I also want to make sure Putin fails and Ukrainians we host are once again able to go back to their own country, a country safe and free from occupation.

Not only do conflict and corruption create refugees, seen a new phenomena but hostile states deliberately create refugee crises as a way of de-stabilising other countries.

Belarus is an ignoble example of this phenomenon, sending thousands of desperate migrants to its border with Poland, in an effort to antagonise the European Union following the imposition of sanctions for their culpability in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Others are of course fleeing famine.

Others will face natural disasters. That’s one of the reasons that the world must come together to tackle climate change.

Migration is an inevitable and welcome part of the human story. But in many cases, what people yearn for is a safe and happy home in the country of their birth.

And countries are entitled and it’s quite right to ask: what is the virtue and purpose of someone coming to live in our country?

In this instance once again we need to employ precision of the language that we use.

People have very different reasons for moving – and those reasons should not be conflated or confused, and they are not interchangeable.

If someone is an economic migrant, they should not be treated like a refugee.

Refugees should typically seek sanctuary in the first safe country they reach. And country shopping is a very different matter entirely. Seeking refuge and country shopping are different matters entirely.

For example, no one has to cross the Channel to the UK because France is unsafe.

Being trafficked to a country against your will is not the same thing as choosing to pay a people smuggler to get you there.

If you come here as a student, you cannot automatically expect to stay here in a job. Not all invitations are permanent.

Leaving home because you have to is not the same thing as leaving home because you choose to.

Now wealthy countries of the world have a moral duty to help the poor and dispossessed.

But doing the right thing by those people doesn’t necessarily mean relocating them to our own country.

Central to solving the international migration challenge is doing more, collectively, to help people to stay at home and thrive in their countries.

Because the international community must never start from the premise that some countries are beyond hope and will always be moribund economically, or riven by conflict, or presided over by dictators.

That fatalism serves nobody.

Improving safe and legal routes for refugees is important – but cannot be the summit of our ambition.

We need to take on the conditions, the circumstances, that create refugees and drive large scale migration in the first place.

The UK does this by both being one of the largest investors in overseas development assistance – and our policy of increasing our trade volumes through more trade with the developing world.

If we are to address the scale of movement, we have to address the reasons why people move.

Given the choice, poor people move to where they think more wealth can be sought.

So supporting the poorest countries through international development can play some role in lifting the most vulnerable out of poverty. The UK is proud to be one of the largest aid spenders in the world.

We cannot aid alone.

International trade is the only sustainable way to make poor people less poor.

And allied to that the moral case against illegal immigration is unanswerable.

Of course people should not come to a country illegally…

…of course it is not fair on the host population…

…of course it will undermine popular support for legal immigration…

…and of course it weakens our ability to help those genuinely in need.

But of course that’s not the whole story.

Illegal migration is lethally dangerous.

It is facilitated by criminal gangs who care not one jot about those whom they treat as human cargo – and who use the profits of their foul trade to finance other criminal action.

In recent years, tens of thousands of people have died attempting irregular migration.

And the world cannot stand idly by and let this carry on.

We need to work together to break the business model of the criminal gangs driving illegal migration numbers.

International co-operation in all these areas is essential.

Just as the world has to work together to address climate change – and to seek to end and prevent conflict – so it needs to do the same to combat this illegally facilitated and unsustainable migration.

And we are being innovative in the UK.

Our Migration and Economic Development Partnership with Rwanda is an innovative way of dealing with illegal immigration.

It is designed to act as a deterrent, by making clear that anyone who comes to the UK illegally cannot expect to stay.

But it will also provide illegal immigrants with an alternative home.

In a country genuinely welcoming and thoughtful to refugees.

It is called a Migration and Economic Development Partnership for good reason, as we are making a major investment in Rwanda.

A country seeking to export solutions to a continent which sadly has been subject to importing problems.

We are working closely with France to stop illegal Channel crossings, to good effect.

And I have just signed a deal with Frontex, the European Borders and Coast Guard Agency, to exchange more information and intelligence and take on the people-smuggling gangs together with our near neighbours.

As Ylva Johansson, the EU Commissioner for Home Affairs, said in our recent meeting, you have to fight networks with networks.

In order to fight a network. You have to build and network.

The UK has also secured close co-operation on migration with a range of countries, including India, Vietnam, and Albania, and signed returns agreements with countries such as Serbia, Pakistan, and Georgia.

And more recently we have seen other countries consider the need to do more, including exploring safe third country models for dealing with illegal immigration.

Indeed, Italy has developed with Albania its own model for processing asylum claims.

It is striking that these countries are led by governments of varying political hues.

This is far from just a function of political philosophy, but about hard reality. Illegal migration affects them all.

Dealing with this challenge also means considering, together, whether multilateral institutions designed and created decades ago, some instances half a century ago, need updating to meet the challenges of today – and whether we need any new frameworks to do so.

Those who cherish our multilateral institutions – I want to make it very clear, the UK and I do. We recognise them as mighty accomplishments to preserve. We should be the most passionate advocates of adapting them to a profoundly changed and still changing world.

Some of the institutions that we value aren’t working as effectively as we wish. We must reform them or watch them atrophy.

People sometimes think all these institutions have been preserved in aspic since they were created. That is simply not true.

For example, the 1951 UN Convention on Refugees was revised through a new Protocol in 1967, expanding the protections beyond Europe to all people fleeing conflict and persecution.

We need to make sure that the treaties, conventions, and international agreements that govern immigration policy are up to date, are relevant and are not anachronistic.

That they continue to support those who need support but are strong enough to resist abuse.

And there are several recent precedents for increased global co-operation on these issues.

In 2018, the UN General Assembly adopted the Global Compact on Refugees.

It provides the framework for a longer-term, more sustainable response to refugee crises with a focus on supporting refugees and host communities in developing countries closer to the pint of origin of the refugees themselves.

The UK is championing longer-term approaches to protracted displacement and we want to help ensure that refugee children, especially the most marginalised girls, are safe and getting an education.

The compact in turn establishes the Global Refugee Forum – a ministerial meeting every 4 years.

At the GRF last December, the UK government committed to a quota for UNHCR-referred refugees, with an overall cap on safe and legal routes.

We will ardently encourage other countries to follow suit.

US and Canada are world leaders in this area – and we of course will learn from their experiences.

Delivering a more effective global approach through the implementation of the Global Compact for Migration which is central to our international development work.

My former department – the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office – is doing a great deal of regional work to improve livelihoods, tackle conflict and climate change, assist with border management, and support the countries in absorbing migrants, in some instances in far greater numbers than we are.

Reducing the vulnerabilities faced by migrants is both an urgent moral mission and in the self-interest of all developed nations such as ours.

The UK will significantly increase our work with international partners in the UN, G7, international finance institutions, and other global fora to rally greater support for a multilateral approach to these issues.

For example, in October, the Commonwealth Heads of Government are meeting in Samoa.

This year, Italy – a country that has been on the receiving end of very significantly increasing levels of illegal migration – holds the presidency of the G7.

G20 meetings are being held in Brazil, in a continent and of course South America which has long dealt with the difficulties caused by mass migration.

And the UK will host a meeting of the European Political Community, a grouping perfectly suited for discussing illegal migration and the management of that within the European continent.

These, and other major international summits this year, will be moments to mobilise action.

And today I am calling for a big, open, global conversation about what more we need to do together to deal with these changing circumstances.

The UK will show the same sort of leadership on this as we have with climate change, conflict prevention, and the good management of Artificial Intelligence.

Success is dependent on a holistic, whole-of-route approach.

While remaining welcoming and generous, we must urgently consider the impact that this level of migration and the impact it has has not just on those countries where migrants seek to settle, but also ones which they transit and also the countries they leave behind and the migrants themselves.

We need to do more, together, to:

smash the people-smuggling gangs;

to address all the drivers of forced displacement;

to help people to thrive in their own countries;

to encourage developed countries to invest greater sums in international development;

to support countries that wish to settle more refugees;

to tackle irregular migration upstream;

to consider how we need to update the international architecture around these issues;

to increase international trade so we can find together the right; and

find, together, the right balance of economic and cultural growth and control.

Now much of this work is already happening, but I am here to tell you that we must inject greater urgency.

So later today, I will meet with representatives from a host of different countries – from European neighbours who face similar pressures to those faced by the UK to countries who face the opposite challenge, with large swathes of their populations emigrating to foreign lands.

I will be inviting countries from across the globe – as well as institutions like the UN, the International Office of Migration, and the UNHCR to discuss these issues.

And the size of the challenge must be met with equal ambition.

Any approach to global migration that is not rooted in international co-operation is doomed to fail.

And yet the solution to even the hardest of problems lies within our reach.

And we must have the ambition, we must have the courage to grasp it together.

The press release issued by the Home Office on 26 February 2024.

Home Secretary to call on the global community to take collective action on migration in speech in New York.

The Home Secretary will lead an international push to tackle issues around global migration in a major speech tomorrow.

James Cleverly will set out his ambition for a new global response to tackle mass migration during a two-day visit to America.

At a speech in New York on Tuesday, the Home Secretary will outline how this global issue can only be met with global action to reform migration policy, and urge the international community to unite in facing this challenge.

The UK is already delivering on the Prime Minister’s plan to stop the boats, with the number of illegal migrants arriving in the UK down by 36% last year compared to 2022. This has been achieved in part thanks to international cooperation, including unprecedented work with France and a returns deal with Albania which has seen Albanian arrivals go down by more than 90%. The Home Secretary will use his speech to call for more international cooperation in this vein.

He will say:

Today I am calling for a big, open, global conversation about what more we need to do together and what needs to change.

The UK will show the same sort of leadership on this as we have with climate change, conflict prevention, and artificial intelligence. Success is dependent on a holistic, whole of route approach.

While remaining welcoming and generous, we must also urgently consider the impact that this level of migration has not just on those countries where migrants seek to settle, or through which they transit, but also on the countries they leave behind, and indeed on the migrants themselves. We need to do more, together.

He will challenge the international community to take collective action to:

• smash the people-smuggling gangs
• address all the drivers of forced displacement
• help people to thrive in their own countries
• encourage developed countries to invest in international development
• support countries who wish to settle more refugees
• tackle irregular migration upstream
• consider how we need to update the international architecture around these issues
• increase international trade
• find, together, the right balance of economic and cultural growth and control

He will highlight how the UK is leading the way with its migration policy:

Our Migration and Economic Development Partnership with Rwanda is an innovative way of dealing with illegal immigration. It acts as a deterrent, by making clear that anyone who comes to the UK illegally cannot expect to stay. But it will also provide illegal UK immigrants with an alternative home. It is called a Migration and Economic Development Partnership for good reason, as we are making a major investment in Rwanda.

We are working closely with France to stop illegal Channel crossings, to good effect. And I have just signed a deal with Frontex, the European Borders and Coast Guard Agency, to exchange information and intelligence and take on the people-smuggling gangs together…

The UK has also secured close co-operation on migration with a range of countries, including India, Vietnam, and Albania, and signed returns agreements with countries such as Serbia, and Georgia.

He will also emphasise the importance of recognising the impact on countries where people emigrate in large numbers from:

A talent drain can have a devastating effect, causing a flight of capital, huge gaps in the workforce, and security issues. It can be extremely expensive for countries to train professionals who then take their skills elsewhere. Furthermore, citizens will suffer if their country fails to invest in skills and training and then plugs those gaps with immigration… doing the right thing by someone in need doesn’t necessarily mean relocating them to our own country. Central to solving the international migration challenge is doing more, collectively, to help people to stay and thrive at home.

This speech comes at the end of the Home Secretary’s visit to the US. Ahead of the speech, James Cleverly spoke to leading tech companies in San Francisco to address critical threats from emerging technologies to public safety and global democracy.

He spoke about the need for more collaboration with organisations including Apple, Meta, Google and YouTube to find solutions to tackle tech-enabled harms and commit to safety-by-design to protect children.

He also took part in an event with Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn, bringing industry leaders together to discuss how tech firms and governments can join forces to better protect users and prevent the exploitation of children on their platforms.

The press release issued by the Home Office on 23 February 2024.

The government has agreed a working arrangement with Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency.

The arrangement is the latest step in the UK’s plan to tackle illegal migration and criminal gangs. This plan has already seen small boat crossings fall by a third last year while numbers arriving in Europe rose steeply.

This long-term framework will provide the UK with access to new levers and intelligence to make the UK and EU’s borders safer and more secure.

It also emphasises our shared commitment for close co-operation to tackle organised immigration crime and secure borders against illegal migration, be it in the Channel, along the EU’s border or further afield.

The working arrangement will deliver across a range of areas, including enhancing both sides’ operational response to illegal migration and organised immigration crime. It provides the basis for mutually beneficial co-operation, including:

• exchange of information and intelligence to disrupt people smuggling gangs and aid border control
• training to strengthen the capabilities of both the UK and EU’s border agencies, allowing UK Border Force to learn from successful tactics overseas and vice versa
• collaboration on relevant research and development of new technologies to protect borders, building on the UK’s own deployment of drones and airborne surveillance to help tackle illegal migration
• operational and technical co-operation, including the deployment of staff on both sides for observation, co-ordination or advisory purposes
• sharing best practice and expertise on issues like returns and border management

As the EU’s Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex has unparalleled insight into illegal migration and cross-border crime on the European continent. Co-operation in the short term could include working together on areas like analysing migratory flows across Europe or combatting document fraud, with a view to expanding the work done together in the longer term.

The signing of the working arrangement by Border Force Director General, Phil Douglas, and the Frontex Executive Director Hans Leijtens – witnessed by the Home Secretary James Cleverly and the European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson – took place in London today (23 February). They discussed migration among other key issues. Co-operation will start as soon as possible with an initial focus on sharing expertise and information on common priorities.

Home Secretary James Cleverly said:

This government has a plan to break the model of the smuggling gangs, end the abuse of our asylum system and stop the boats. The plan is working with crossings down by a third – but we must go further.

Organised immigration crime and people smuggling are global challenges that require shared solutions and ambitions. Our landmark working arrangement between the UK and Frontex is another crucial step in tackling illegal migration, securing our borders and stopping the boats.

The new working arrangement will push forward the UK Prime Minister’s priority to stop the boats and drive down illegal migration. The UK has been making strong progress, with the number of small boat crossings down by 46% last year with 36% fewer individuals arriving by small boats, and returning more than 24,000 people who have no right to be in the UK.

This announcement follows the Prime Minister and European Commission President’s agreement in May last year to strengthen work on tackling illegal migration by developing a new UK-Frontex working arrangement.

This will work alongside the UK’s wider efforts to help stop the boats. This includes the deal signed with France in March 2023, which is more than doubling the number of French personnel deployed across northern France, providing cutting-edge technology, deepening law enforcement co-operation and enhancing intelligence-sharing.

The new working arrangement forms part of the UK’s wider multilateral work to tackle illegal migration including at the G7 and forums like the European Political Community Summit. The UK also plays a key role in the Calais Group, which brings together northern European nations to disrupt traffickers all along the migration route.

The UK’s multi-faceted response to illegal migration has led to the creation of the Small Boats Operational Command to put a stop to all uncontrolled beach landings. The UK’s legacy asylum backlog was cleared by the end of 2023 and immigration enforcement was significantly strengthened with a 70% increase in illegal working raids.

The press release issued by the Home Office on 21 February 2024.

Children will be better protected from sexual predators under plans being brought forward by the Home Secretary today (Wednesday 21 February).

There will be a legal requirement for anyone in regulated activity relating to children in England, including teachers or healthcare professionals, to report it if they know a child is being sexually abused.

Those who fail to report child sexual abuse they are aware of, falling short of their legal duties, face being barred from working with young people.

Anyone who actively protects child sexual abusers – by intentionally blocking others from reporting or covering up the crime – could go to prison for 7 years.

By making mandatory reporting a legal requirement, the government is delivering on a key recommendation in the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) report to protect children from harm and make sure authorities never again turn a blind eye to this kind of devastating crime.

In a move to further protect people from sexual predators, the police are being given greater powers to stop registered sex offenders from changing their name if they think they still pose a risk to their communities.

This will mean those who commit these despicable crimes face the full force of the law and are managed under tough measures, preventing them from offending again.

Home Secretary James Cleverly said:

There is no excuse for turning a blind eye to a child’s pain.

Having listened to the voices of victims and survivors and reviewed the work of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, we are working at pace to get a mandatory reporting duty for child sexual abuse onto the statute book.

We’re also going further, equipping the police with more powers to prevent those who have committed abhorrent sexual crimes in the past from evading the police by changing their name.

We will continue use all levers at our disposal to tackle this horrific crime and keep women and children safe.

Minister for Victims and Safeguarding Laura Farris said:

This government has introduced robust legislation for protecting children. But we know children were failed in the past, and that’s why we commissioned the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.

By bringing into force a mandatory duty to report child sexual abuse – the inquiry’s principal recommendation – we are sending a clear message that children will never be let down whether in schools, sports settings or any supervised environment.

As someone who worked on the Inquiry before coming into politics this is personal to me. We will continue to support the police in the toughest crack down on anyone who poses a risk to children.

Gabrielle Shaw, Chief Executive for The National Association for People Abused in Childhood said:

NAPAC welcomes this important measure by the government that will improve safeguarding of children and increase accountability amongst those who have a duty of care.

The introduction of mandatory reporting is a big step in the right direction, which must be implemented alongside an approach that prioritises the wellbeing of the child and ensures they have access to ongoing, specialist support. This will require investment in training requirements, wider supporting structures and effective tracking and review.

National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for the Management of Violent and Sexual Offenders, Assistant Chief Constable Jonny Blackwell, said:

Managing the potential risk posed by registered sexual offenders within the community is a complex area of work for police and we work closely with partners as part of a multi-agency approach to manage these offenders every day.

UK policing has some of the most advanced and stringent tools in the world to manage registered sex offenders, however we will always seek innovative ways to continue to keep up with the changing world we work in.

Any new restrictions which enable us to more effectively manage the risk posed by offenders to the public are welcome.

Chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, Professor Alexis Jay OBE said:

I welcome the Home Secretary’s statement that measures to introduce mandatory reporting will be included in the Criminal Justice Bill. I look forward to working with the Home Secretary on the detail of this as the bill progresses.

Under the proposed changes, police will be able to issue a notice to sex offenders who continue to spark concern blocking them from changing or attempting to change their name on official documents such as passports and driving licences without their approval.

Today’s announcement builds on the UK’s existing laws to manage sex offenders, which are among the toughest in the world.

The government is also investing in a range of work to strengthen law enforcement capacity and capability to tackle child sexual abuse and exploitation. This includes:

• £6.5 million this year for the Tackling Organised Exploitation programme (TOEX), which brings together local, regional and national data to ensure police can effectively uncover and prosecute exploitation
• £1.9 million in the new Child Sexual Exploitation Police Taskforce, which is providing practical, expert, on the ground support for forces with a particular focus on group-based child sexual exploitation, including grooming gangs

The new measures will be introduced as amendments at report stage of the Criminal Justice Bill in the House of Commons.

The press release issued by the Home Office on 20 February 2024.

Vast majority of review recommendations implemented within one year, with the remaining recommendations progressing at pace.

A year on from the Independent Review of Prevent, the government has already implemented the vast majority of recommendations. This delivers on a commitment made at the time of the independent review’s publication.

A report published today demonstrates the significant progress made to deliver a stronger, more transparent and proportionate approach to stopping people from being radicalised into terrorism.

Thirty of the 34 recommendations made by Independent Reviewer William Shawcross have already been delivered and progress has been made against each of the remaining recommendations.

Key recommendations implemented since the independent review include:

• new Prevent duty guidance came into effect in England and Wales on 31 December 2023 that assists statutory partners to understand how to comply with the duty and strengthen their Prevent delivery
• new channel duty guidance was published on 9 October 2023 that ensures the multi-agency support provided to those susceptible to radicalisation is robust, effective and consistent
• strengthened due diligence checks on civil society organisations to ensure that Prevent does not work with or fund those who legitimise or support terrorism
• research to assess the reviewer’s concerns about the prevalence of antisemitism in channel cases has bolstered our approach to tackling extremist narratives: furthermore, new intervention providers specialising in antisemitism have been hired
• delivery of the programme has moved from a national to a regional model to ensure we remain dynamic to the threat of radicalisation facing this country: 170+ local authorities in England and Wales are now supported by an expert prevent adviser to maximise delivery.

In the 12 months since the publication of the independent review, the Home Office has built on the recommendations made by leading a cross-government change programme which directs activity to where it will have the most impact tackling radicalisation and dangerous ideologies.

Effective partnership and multi-agency working is central to the delivery of Prevent. The government, operational partners and local authorities have worked closely together to implement the recommendations of the review.

The Home Secretary James Cleverley said:

Delivering the recommendations of the Independent Review of Prevent has been critical to ensuring a Prevent programme that is fit for purpose and agile enough to meet the threats we face today.

The conflict in Israel and Gaza has brought the importance of Prevent into sharp focus. Prevent is a key part of our plan to tackle radicalisation and I am confident that it is more capable than ever at meeting that challenge.

The Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said:

Protecting the British public isn’t just about waiting for the next threat, we must confront the ideas that drive radicalisation and violence. Prevent is key to our defence.

This past year we’ve brought Prevent back to its core mission – tackling the ideological causes of terrorism.

The conflict in the Middle East has demonstrated why that mission has never been more important. We will continue to adapt our approach to keep pace with the evolving threat.

To ensure rigorous, consistent, and proportionate decision making on all referrals to the programme, a new prevent assessment framework has been implemented so that only those presenting a counter-terrorism risk are supported by Prevent.

Further, a new security threat check has been implemented across Prevent delivery to ensure that all activity is guided by the current threat picture.

The independent review placed a strong emphasis on enhancing training and a refreshed training package has been developed alongside partners, including the Commission for Countering Extremism, Department for Education, Department for Health and Social Care and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

This training places an increased focus on extremist ideologies so that frontline professionals can confidently identify those at risk and refer them to Prevent when support is required.

The overhaul of the Prevent programme has been underpinned by the guiding principles of the independent review to bring Prevent back to its core mission of stopping people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism, increasing understanding of extremist ideology, enhancing approach to delivery, and improving transparency and oversight.

In the coming weeks, a new standards and compliance unit will be operationalised by the Commission for Countering Extremism to create an independent oversight function. It will provide the public and those working on the programme with an avenue to report instances where Prevent may have fallen short of the expected high standards.

Work will continue to ensure these changes are firmly and consistently embedded across government and the frontline professionals who deliver the programme in communities.

The press release issued by the Home Office on 14 February 2024.

Hundreds of thousands of hours of patrols to tackle anti-social behaviour and violence across England and Wales, backed by £66m.

Every police force in England and Wales will receive at least £1 million to ramp up patrols to tackle violence and disorder, targeted in areas with high levels of anti-social behaviour.

It is estimated that the funding, hitting £66 million for England and Wales, will enable each force to deploy uniformed patrols for up to 20,000 hours in “hotspot” areas each year, helping drive down crime and boost public confidence in their local force. Across all 43 forces areas, this will support between 600,000 and 900,000 hours of hotspot patrols over the next year.

This approach has already been piloted in 10 areas, with over 80,000 hours of patrols in the six months since it launched. This has led to nearly 600 arrests, close to 1,500 stop and searches and around 700 uses of anti-social behaviour powers such as community protection notices and public protection orders. The hotspot approach has helped cut anti-social behaviour by over 40 per cent in Brunswick, in Lancashire according to data from the police and crime commissioner. While in Essex, the police have reported that incidents of anti-social behaviour in Southend have almost halved in the last 12 months with hotspots in specific areas in the city playing a key role in this.

The £66m of funding announced today will be targeted in areas where there is high prevalence of violence, anti-social behaviour, and illegal public drug consumption, which not only makes communities feel less safe but can fuel drug related violence.

In a further bid to tackle illicit drug crimes, the government has also set an ambitious new target to smash another 1,000 county lines by August. This will bring the total number of county lines dismantled to over 3,000 since the drug strategy launched in April 2022, with the government already reaching its initial target to shut down 2,000 lines by 2025 well ahead of schedule. This has included arresting and charging hundreds of dangerous criminals who controlled these lines.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said:

Anti-social behaviour destroys communities and takes away the public’s right to feel safe in the place they call home.

Our plan to cut crime on our streets is working, with neighbourhood crime, including robbery and theft, almost halved, and we must stick with it.

We will not stop until every person, no matter where they live, can feel safe and proud of their community. That is why we are investing in every police force in England and Wales so they can tackle violence and disorder head on.

Home Secretary James Cleverly said:

Getting more officers out and visible in communities is vital for public confidence. We have delivered 20,000 additional police officers and we’re making sure they are tackling those visible crimes, like anti-social behaviour, which have a corrosive effect on people’s sense of safety.

Our plan will put more officers on patrol in local communities up and down the country – an approach that has been proven to work, to help ensure that people are not only safe, but that they feel safe, in their neighbourhoods.

This announcement is the latest step in the government’s Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan, launched by the Prime Minister last year, setting out a zero-tolerance approach to all forms of anti-social behaviour.

To date, the government has:

• increased the use of drug testing on arrest, enabling police to test for a wider range of class A drugs like ecstasy and methamphetamine
• upped on-the-spot fines to £1,000 for fly-tipping and £500 for littering or graffiti
• banned nitrous oxide to stop local parks and amenities from becoming dumping grounds for empty cannisters and sites for loitering and drug use

This builds on action already taken by the government to make sure police and local authorities have the tools they need to tackle anti-social behaviour and crime which can strike at the heart of local communities, with research showing that 50 per cent of crime is carried out in just 5 per cent of areas on average.

Through the Criminal Justice Bill police and local authority powers will be strengthened to tackle anti-social behaviour including new powers to quickly close premises which are being used, or likely to be used, to commit nuisance or disorder.

The roll out of the hotspot model across England and Wales also follows the success of the government’s Grip funding which was provided to 20 forces with areas suffering from high levels of violence. This supported intelligence led patrols to target specific areas and tackle violent crime. In the areas and times where Grip patrols were active, we have seen a 7% reduction in violence and robbery offences.

At his first National Policing Board last month, the Home Secretary announced that tackling visible crime is one of his top priorities for police given the impact it has on public confidence.

Deputy Chief Constable Andy Prophet, National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for Anti-Social Behaviour, said:

Tackling violence on our streets and ASB in our communities are top priorities for policing because they can have such a corrosive impact on people’s lives and wider society.

Residents often tell us they want to see more uniformed officers out in their local area and this additional funding will not only help forces to enhance their current activity, but it will enable them to target their resources to hotspot areas, where criminal activity is most concentrated and areas most at risk of harm.

I welcome any measure which helps to reduce reports of ASB, violence and disorder and show our communities just how seriously we take these issues.

Steve Turner, Association of Police and Crime Commissioners Joint Lead on Local Policing said:

Anti-social behaviour is a blight on so many people’s lives, undermining their sense of security and wellbeing. The anti-social behaviour hotspot pilots have demonstrated what can be achieved by concentrating efforts on problem areas and following a zero-tolerance approach to drug taking, loitering and fly-tipping.

Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) know from their engagement with communities, how the public want the tackling of anti-social behaviour to be prioritised and PCCs have led in the development of the direct approaches used in the ten pilot areas, involving the deployment of both police officers and community-based wardens.

PCCs welcome the funding for this initiative to be extended to every force area in England and Wales and will continue to work directly with the public to ensure that the areas and activities targeted are both effective and visible.

Case study 1: Lancashire Constabulary

Using trial funding Lancashire Police have delivered visible policing hours across the county to deal with anti-social behaviour. After six months of hotspot policing in Brunswick, Blackpool, reported anti-social behaviour has decreased by 42% compared to the same period last year and public confidence in the police tackling anti-social behaviour in the area has increased by 7.9%. Work in Brunswick has included the creation of a monthly PACT (Police and Communities Together) meeting in Brunswick to allow residents and community members and local councillors to positively engage with local officers and relay any concerns that they have.

Case study 2: Essex Police

Anti-social behaviour in Southend overall is down by 50% with 1,768 fewer offences reported in the year to the end of January 2024 compared to the previous 12 months. Hotspot patrols in two areas in the city have played a leading role in this, as well policing activity across the city.  Hotspot patrols were carried out in Southchurch Road zone where there had been issues with anti-social behaviour from youths in the park, and reports of homeless people congregating, as well as sex workers and drug-related activity in the stairwells. Whilst in the area surrounding Maple Square, a residential area, there had been issues related to drug dealing and nuisance behaviour. The hotspot patrols in both areas have helped to tackle anti-social behaviour and results so far have been very positive.

The press release issued by the Home Office on 14 February 2024.

A call for evidence has been launched to ask whether current crossbow laws need to be strengthened, as the government continues action to prevent violence.

Under current legislation, it is illegal for anyone under 18 to purchase or possess a crossbow, and anyone who carries a crossbow in public without reasonable excuse faces up to four years behind bars.

The government is considering going further, launching a call for evidence to ask whether these rules are tough enough. Strengthened rules could include a licensing scheme to protect public safety police checks for anyone looking to purchase a crossbow.

This would mean that crossbows are policed under regulations similar to that of firearms.

Safeguarding Minister, Laura Farris said:

Crossbows are used rarely in violent crime in this country but they can be highly dangerous.

We’re doing all we can to ensure we have the appropriate measures in place against any risks these potentially dangerous weapons may pose.

I encourage the public and those in the industry to come forward to share their views so we can have the most accurate picture and take any necessary action to keep our streets safe.

Whilst crossbow incidents are rare – there were fewer than 10 homicides by crossbow between 2011 and 2021 – it is clear that when used as a weapon, crossbows do pose a risk and the government is determined to ensure any needed safeguards are in place to keep the public safe.

Today’s announcement comes after former Home Secretary, Priti Patel MP, commissioned a review on controls following the incident at Windsor Castle on Christmas Day in 2021 where a 19-year-old man was arrested on the grounds of the castle allegedly carrying the weapon. Following his arrest, Jaswant Singh Chail was sentenced to nine years in prison with a further five years on extended licence.

The call for evidence builds on the government’s work to prevent serious violence and stop weapons ending up in the hands of criminals, and follows last month’s announcement that zombie-style knives and machetes will be banned.

Through the Criminal Justice Bill, the government will give the police more powers to seize knives and increases prison sentences for anyone selling knives to anyone under 18 or possessing a banned weapon.

Today’s call for evidence will last 8 weeks to allow time to gather information which will then be considered by the Home Office as it assesses the need for further tightening of controls on weapons.

The press release issued by the Home Office on 12 February 2024.

Stop! Think Fraud, the National Campaign Against Fraud, launches today.

A major campaign to transform the fight against fraudsters launches today (12 February 2024).

Stop! Think Fraud is backed by leading counter fraud experts who are uniting under one voice to provide consistent, clear and robust anti-fraud advice to the public.

Fraud accounts for around 40% of all crime in England and Wales, with an estimated 3.2 million offences each year. The latest data from the Crime Survey of England and Wales shows it has reduced by 13% over the past year. The estimated cost of fraud to society is £6.8 billion in England and Wales.

Fraud has also more than doubled in Scotland over the past 9 years and reports spiked in Northern Ireland during the pandemic, with a decline now being observed.

The evidence led campaign draws on the expertise of leading counter-fraud experts and includes an online fraud hub which will provide concise, simple to follow advice. It will also signpost victims to relevant organisations for further advice and support.

Impactful adverts will also be prominently displayed in public settings, from billboards to radio, and from TV screens to social media. It is anticipated the campaign will be seen by 95% of adults in the UK over the coming weeks.

Home Secretary James Cleverly said:

Our bold Fraud Strategy is continuing to deliver for the British people.

This new campaign is a powerful tool to add to our arsenal, which already includes a world-first agreement from tech firms to prevent online fraud and the rollout of a National Fraud Squad that has 400 expert investigators.

I encourage everyone to stop, take a moment to think about fraud, and share this messaging far and wide.

Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said:

Fraud ruins lives. Following this advice will give people the best tips to stop fraudsters from stealing their hard-earned cash, and point them towards all the help and information on offer.

Our Fraud Strategy is successfully turning the tide against fraudsters. This new campaign will share the details we all need to defend ourselves and our friends.

Stop! Think Fraud is a ground-breaking step forward against the most prolific crime type in the UK and delivers on the Fraud Strategy’s commitment to release a public awareness campaign.

It has been created to empower a mass audience, with a new website providing vital guidance on how to spot fraud, stay safe and what to do if targeted. The web address will be www.gov.uk/stopthinkfraud.

The campaign has far reaching support among the tech, financial and retail sectors, as well as law enforcement, victim care agencies and consumer groups. Supporting agencies have pledged to prominently display the Stop! Think Fraud advice and share it among their stakeholders.

They will also update pre-existing fraud advice they have shared in public places and replace it with the Stop! Think Fraud messaging and branding.

This one clear set of advice will remove confusion, which was a risk with so many different campaigns previously existing in the same space.

Temporary Commissioner Pete O’Doherty, from the City of London Police, said:

As the national lead force for fraud we wholeheartedly support Stop! Think Fraud and hope it will raise a much greater understanding of what fraud is and how to avoid it.

Fraud accounts for around 40% of all crime in the UK, so it’s vitally important to reach all corners of the country with this campaign to help protect everyone from the devastating financial and emotional impacts of fraud.

Alongside this campaign, we will continue to deliver on the National Fraud Strategy set by government and launch the replacement service for Action Fraud later this year.

Nick Sharp, Deputy Director for Fraud at the National Crime Agency, said:

Fraud is the most prevalent crime in the UK, impacting on millions of victims both financially and emotionally.

It is a priority for the National Crime Agency to reduce the harm that fraud causes – and the NCA has been working closely across a range of sectors to ensure that messages that help empower people to protect themselves are based on the collective knowledge of the law enforcement community.

The Stop! Think Fraud campaign is a major milestone that will build awareness of how to be better protected from becoming a victim, and how best to prevent and report fraud.

Felicity Oswald, Chief Operating Officer of the National Cyber Security Centre, said:

Prioritising basic security measures, such as enabling 2-step verification for your primary email account, is crucial to protect you against online fraud and increasingly sophisticated scams.

Following the advice from Stop! Think Fraud will help significantly reduce your risk of becoming a victim of fraudsters.

The launch of Stop! Think Fraud is a significant milestone in the Home Office’s delivery of the Fraud Strategy, published in May 2023.

Key strategy pledges already fulfilled include the agreement of the world’s first charter to prevent online fraud, the rollout of the National Fraud Squad and the appointment of a government anti-fraud champion, a post occupied by Simon Fell MP.

Another strategy commitment will be delivered next month, when the Home Secretary welcomes interior ministers from international partners to London for the first ever Global Fraud Summit.

Representatives from Interpol, the EU Commission and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime will also be present, alongside some of the biggest companies and consumer groups in the world.

Wayne Stevens, National Fraud Lead at the charity Victim Support, said:

Fraud is a devastating crime. It’s essential that the public have access to reliable and up-to-date information about how to protect themselves – we’d urge everyone to take a look at this new guidance.

Sadly, there is still a lot of shame and stigma around fraud. For those who are targeted this stigma makes the experience even worse and often stops them seeking help.

We want everyone to understand that, if you are the victim of a fraud, it’s never your fault. We are available 24/7 to provide you with independent, free support.

Marc Allera, CEO, BT Group’s Consumer Division said:

As an industry, network operators have a responsibility to our customers to do all we can to help them spot and stop scams. So we’re fully behind the UK Government’s new National Campaign Against Fraud.

We’re constantly investing and deploying new technologies to prevent fraud taking place across the UK’s telecommunications infrastructure – and we know that partnerships across government, industry and law enforcement are critical to fully tackle the issue.

This campaign is a great example of that collaboration in action, and provides clear and simple guidance everyone can follow to help protect themselves from fraud.

Matt Hepburn, Fraud Spokesperson at TSB, said:

Fraudsters continue to bombard the public with fake texts, calls and scam content online – so it’s vital that we all remain alert to the threat.

The Home Office campaign is a powerful way of reminding millions of consumers to be wary of scams that reach us online, via social media, or through our phones.

The Home Office is working with the following stakeholders on the campaign:

• Barclays
• British Retail Consortium
• BT
• Citizens Advice
• City of London Police
• Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
• Financial Conduct Authority
• Google
• Gumtree
• Halifax
• HSBC
• iD Mobile
• LBG
• Match Group (the parent company of Tinder, Hinge, Match, Ourtime, Even, Plenty of Fish)
• Media Smart (a subsidiary company of the Advertising Association)
• Meta
• Mobile UK
• National Crime Agency
• National Trading Standards
• National Cyber Security Centre
• The Pensions Regulator
• Royal Mail
• Santander
• Stop Scams UK
• TalkTalk
• TechUK
• Telecommunications UK Forum
• TikTok
• TSB
• UK Finance
• Victim Support
• Virgin Media 02
• X

The press release issued by the Home Office on 8 February 2024.

Police will be given powers to arrest protesters who wear face coverings to threaten others and avoid prosecution, and pyrotechnics will be banned at protests.

The new laws will crack down on dangerous disorder, following warnings from police chiefs that some protesters are using face coverings to conceal their identities, not only to intimidate the law-abiding majority, but also to avoid criminal convictions.

Whilst police already have powers to ask individuals to remove these at designated protests, where police believe criminality is likely to occur, this new offence will empower officers to arrest individuals who disregard their orders, with those who flout the rules facing a month behind bars and a £1,000 fine.

Flares and other pyrotechnics will also be banned from protests, and protesters will no longer be able to cite the right to protest as a reasonable excuse to get away with disruptive offences, such as blocking roads.

Flares and other pyrotechnics have been used during recent large scale protests, including being fired at police officers, posing significant risk of injury. The new offence will make the possession of flares, fireworks and any other pyrotechnics at public processions and assemblies for protest illegal. Perpetrators may be forced to pay a £1,000 fine.

The measures, which will be introduced in the Criminal Justice Bill, will also make climbing on war memorials a specific public order offence, carrying a 3 month sentence and a £1,000 fine. This comes after recent incidents where individuals have broken away from large protests and scaled national monuments, demonstrating brazen disrespect to those who have given their lives for this country.

Alongside the new offences, the ability to use the right to protest as a reasonable or lawful excuse to commit some crimes would also be removed, ensuring that protest is not used as a defence for criminality such as obstructing public highways, locking on, as well as public nuisance.

Home Secretary James Cleverly said:

Recent protests have seen a small minority dedicated to causing damage and intimidating the law-abiding majority.

The right to protest is paramount in our county, but taking flares to marches to cause damage and disruption is not protest, it is dangerous.

That is why we are giving police the powers to prevent any of this criminality on our streets.

National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for Public Order, Chief Constable BJ Harrington said:

We welcome the proposal to create new offences relating to war memorials and flares, as well as making it clear that covering your face at a protest to conceal identity is not acceptable.

These changes are in line with conversations that we have had with the Home Office to ensure that we have the powers that we need to get balance right between the rights of those who wish to protest, and those impacted by them.

Thankfully, the use of flares and pyrotechnics at public order events is rare, but they are still extremely dangerous. Safety is our number one concern when policing these events, and the effective banning of these items during protests can only help in our mission to ensure that they take place without anyone coming to any harm.

As with all policing powers, these new powers will be used when appropriate, proportionate, and necessary to achieve policing objectives.

Policing is not anti-protest, but there is a difference between protest and criminal activism, and we are committed to responding quickly and effectively to activists who deliberately disrupt people’s lives with reckless and criminal acts.

The College of Policing’s Chief Constable, Andy Marsh, said:

I welcome the new offences this legislation will provide the officers who are policing protests and working hard, in complex environments, to keep people safe.

The safety of both those protesting and others nearby trying to go about their business is the top priority and our training and guidance focuses on balancing the rights of those protesting with the rights of those affected. The new legislation is now clear that protest is not an excuse for serious disruption.

As with previous changes the College of Policing will work quickly to provide practical advice, training and support for policing to utilise these new powers.

Speaking to police chiefs at a roundtable on Tuesday (6 February), the Home Secretary thanked the police for the efforts and successes they have made in keeping the public safe during recent protests.

Since 7 October 2023, there have been more than 1,000 protests and vigils, with more than 26,000 police officer shifts between 7 October and 17 December alone, and 600 arrests.

The Home Secretary called on chiefs to continue to use all the powers at their disposal to maintain order as they meet the evolving challenges.

The measures announced today (8 February 2024) are part of the government’s ongoing crack down on disruptive protest and follow legislation passed last year which criminalises actions such as ‘locking on’ and given police the ability to stop and search protesters for items such as padlocks and superglue, if they suspect they are setting out to cause chaos.

The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 also made it easier to tackle public nuisance caused by protesters. The government is working positively with the police to ensure the powers they have to maintain order are effective and that practical and workable solutions are developed in response to any gaps that are identified within the existing legal framework.

During the most recent Just Stop Oil campaign, police figures show that 657 protesters were arrested in 2023 under the government’s Public Order Act 2023, showing that existing powers are effective in managing disruptive protests.

The measures will be introduced as amendments at the report stage of the Criminal Justice Bill in the House of Commons and will apply to England and Wales.

The press release issued by the Home Office on 8 February 2024.

The government has laid legislation in Parliament to transfer the Police and Crime Commissioner functions to the West Midlands and South Yorkshire mayors.

The transfer of Police and Crime Commissioner functions will mean that the mayors in the West Midlands and South Yorkshire will have oversight over their respective local police forces to improve collaboration across public services. The Police and Crime Commissioner role will be assumed by the newly elected mayors across those local areas following the upcoming elections in May.

This follows two six-week public consultations which gave the public the opportunity to share their opinions on the proposals. The responses were then carefully considered by the Home Secretary, amongst other information, before the decision was made to proceed with the legislation.

These changes will come into effect from the next mayoral elections in May 2024, protecting the democratic accountability of the Police and Crime Commissioner role. With additional responsibility for their respective local forces, the newly elected mayors will be well placed to align police and crime priorities with other public services such as transport and regeneration.

Subject to parliamentary approval, these changes are a continuation of the government’s plan set out in the Levelling Up white paper to see all combined authority mayors exercise Police and Crime Commissioner functions, where feasible. This has already been successfully implemented in Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and in London where the mayor has responsibilities equivalent to that of a Police and Crime Commissioner.

Parliamentary debates to discuss the legislation are expected to commence shortly.

The term of office for the current mayor of South Yorkshire will be brought forward and end in May 2024 rather than 2026.