Every parliamentary written question tabled by Carla Denyer this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 1–20 of 30 · Home Office
What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on (a) trends in the level of suicide among young asylum seekers in the last five years and (b) the adequacy of cross-departmental working on safeguarding for these young people.
Awaiting answer.
If she will publish the a) terms, b) monitoring arrangements and c) i) children’s and ii) human rights impact assessments for the April 2026 UK-France border security agreement.
The UK and France agreed a new border security partnership in April 2026 that will strengthen joint efforts to tackle illegal migration and prevent dangerous Channel crossings. This work is explicitly focused on saving lives by bearing down on the criminal gangs who profit from a business model that exploits vulnerable people.The agreement is subject to robust monitoring and evaluation arrangements agreed with France. These include regular joint assessment of activity and its impact, to ensure that funding and operational activity are delivering against shared objectives.As is standard for agreements of this nature, detailed operational terms and associated documents are not published, as doing so would risk undermining the effectiveness of activity designed to disrupt organised criminal networks.The Government takes its obligations in respect of children and human rights seriously. All activity undertaken as part of the UK–France partnership is delivered in line with our domestic and international legal obligations.
With reference to Freedom of Information Request 2025/07437 and her department’s response to it on 29th July 2025, if she will provide details of the a) cybersecurity and b) misuse concerns referred to.
Information is released into the public domain where it is appropriate to do so. The Home Office would not provide an insight into the design of our technology systems in order to maintain security and protect the border
What assessment her Department has made of the accuracy of (a) benchmarking, (b) validation methods and (c) error rates of AI tools used in asylum casework.
There are two AI tools in use in asylum casework currently; Asylum Case Summarisation (ACS) and Asylum Policy Search (APS).Bench Marking & Validation - Both evaluations used a mixed-methods approach to collect primary data during and after the pilots. All participants in the test and comparison groups were asked to log information for each case undertaken. For the Asylum Case Summarisation pilot, the logging exercise captured data on 334 cases in the test group and 95 cases in the comparison group. For the Asylum Policy Search pilot, the logging exercise captured data on 270 cases in the test group and 214 cases in the comparison group.The following published research note provides more detail on both pilots and the findings we documented - Evaluation of AI trials in the asylum decision making process - GOV.UK.Error Rates - Technical specialists reviewed all summaries created by the Asylum Case Summarisation tool for accuracy prior to use in the pilot. A small proportion of summaries produced (9%) were deemed to be inaccurate or had missing information and were therefore removed from the pilot and these cases progressed in the business-as-usual way. Of the summaries that progressed in the pilot, 23% of users reported they were not fully confident in the summary information and would warrant further exploration in a full roll out. The Asylum Case Summarisation Tool has not yet been rolled out operationally.The methodologies used in the evaluation of our Asylum AI tools were reviewed by and agreed with the Cabinet Office Evaluation Taskforce, and apply to both ACS and APS.
With reference to the guidance entitled AI Playbook for UK Government, published on 10 February 2025, whether this guidance was used in the context of AI tools for asylum casework.
We follow and abide by Government and Home Office guidance for all AI development, however the development and delivery of the Asylum project pilots predated the AI Playbook.
What assessment she has made of the potential impact of her 5th March policy announcements on the asylum system on levels of homelessness in the UK.
Replacing the statutory duty to support with a power, and making it a condition of support not to work illegally were included in the 5th March policy announcements. The aim of these measures is to reduce misuse of support, not to make people homeless or deny support to those who genuinely need it and have no way to support themselves. Our intention is that support will only go to those who are genuinely destitute and actively engaging with the asylum system, not those seeking to exploit it. These changes will give us greater flexibility to take firmer action against individuals who do not comply. The Restoring Order and Control statement set out the overall direction of the future policy. The intention is to replace the current statutory duty with a more flexible framework, using the discretionary power that can take account of a wider range of factors when assessing and providing asylum support. These factors may include:- Whether individuals have alternative means of supporting themselves such as right to work- Whether individuals have complied with relevant immigration conditions; and- behaviour and conduct in the UK. Support will only be withdrawn where there has been a breach of the rules. Any withdrawal of support is done on a case-by-case basis, with any mitigating circumstances or vulnerabilities considered in the decision-making process. We are engaging with MHCLG and other stakeholders on the potential impact of these changes, particularly on homelessness. We will also ensure that the needs of vulnerable people are properly considered as part of the decision-making process, including the needs of families with children. We are committed to ensuring that proposals are considered carefully, so that they support creation of a system which is both fair and sustainable.
When she will re-open the family reunion scheme.
The family reunion route was suspended to ease the pressures that local authorities and public services have been placed under due to the recent significant increase in people arriving under this route in recent years.Outstanding applications will continue to be considered under the family reunion rules in place prior to the commencement of the suspension, including those that are at appeal.During the suspension, the Government is taking forward wider asylum and family reforms to place the system on a fairer, controlled and sustainable footing. Further information on forthcoming changes will be set out in due course. In the meantime, other family routes remain available, including Appendix FM.
What assessment she has made of the potential impact of 30 month reviews of refugee status on asylum seekers with protected characteristics; and what mechanisms she will put in place to assess threats to those asylum seekers with protected characteristics when making decisions on whether it is safe for those individuals to be sent back to their own country.
Equalities considerations are at the front and centre of our work. As required through the Public Sector Equality Duty, Home Office officials consider equality impacts throughout the policy development process, and the impact that asylum reforms will have on those with protected characteristics, is no exception. Equality impacts will be considered for individual policies as they continue to be developed. These will be kept under review to ensure that there are no unintended impacts on people with protected characteristics. Every asylum claim will be considered on its own merits, taking into account evidence that a person provided as part of their claim, and the latest objective country information. Where it is concluded that the person is no longer at risk on return, their protection status may be revoked and they may be removed. We recognise that there are particular sensitivities when it comes to vulnerable individuals, including those with protected characteristics, and we will always take our responsibilitiesto these individuals extremely seriously. No one who is at risk of persecution or serious harm in their country will be expected to return there.
What assessment she has made of the potential impact of 30 month reviews of refugee status on the Home Office asylum claims backlog.
The change to reduce refugee permission to stay to 30 months is the first step towards implementing the “core protection” model, announced as part of the reforms last autumn.We are committed to ensuring our policies are sustainable and do not place unnecessary burdens on the taxpayer, and this policy is no different. We do not want people to remain on Core Protection for the long term, and only those who do remain on Core Protection will have their protection needs regularly reviewed. We will encourage refugees to switch out of the Core Protection route wherever possible into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route. Reviews will be targeted based on objective country information, and any other new information that comes to light, allowing us to make the most efficient use of resources. We will continue to monitor staffing levels and will deploy our workforce flexibly subject to business needs as we have done in the past.The approach to reviewing status will be efficient and targeted; we will reassess where country conditions or personal circumstances have changed significantly.To do this we will build on the efficiencies that have already seen record levels of initial decisions being made, including use of AI, such as our policy search tool or case summarisation which are already assisting asylum decision makers.The Home Office continues to invest in a programme of transformation and business improvement initiatives to speed up decision making and reduce the time people spend in the asylum system and decrease the number of people who are awaiting an interview or decision. This will enable us to maximise our capacity and progress cases in a more efficient and cost-effective way.
What estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of 30 month reviews of refugee status.
The change to reduce refugee permission to stay to 30 months is the first step towards implementing the “core protection” model, announced as part of the reforms last autumn.We are committed to ensuring our policies are sustainable and do not place unnecessary burdens on the taxpayer, and this policy is no different. We do not want people to remain on Core Protection for the long term, and only those who do remain on Core Protection will have their protection needs regularly reviewed. We will encourage refugees to switch out of the Core Protection route wherever possible into a new, bespoke work and study route to access family reunion and settlement rights with new fees and conditions in accordance with the rules of that route. Reviews will be targeted based on objective country information, and any other new information that comes to light, allowing us to make the most efficient use of resources. We will continue to monitor staffing levels and will deploy our workforce flexibly subject to business needs as we have done in the past.The approach to reviewing status will be efficient and targeted; we will reassess where country conditions or personal circumstances have changed significantly.To do this we will build on the efficiencies that have already seen record levels of initial decisions being made, including use of AI, such as our policy search tool or case summarisation which are already assisting asylum decision makers.The Home Office continues to invest in a programme of transformation and business improvement initiatives to speed up decision making and reduce the time people spend in the asylum system and decrease the number of people who are awaiting an interview or decision. This will enable us to maximise our capacity and progress cases in a more efficient and cost-effective way.
With reference to Freedom from Violence and Abuse: a cross-government strategy to build a safer society for women and girls Action Plan, published on 18 December 2025, if she will set out the timeline for the review of the law on prostitution; and how i) sex workers and ii) people experiencing exploitation linked to the buying and selling of sex will be consulted as part of that review.
On 18 December 2025, the Government published ‘Freedom from Violence and Abuse: a cross-government strategy to build a safer society for women and girls’, which includes a commitment to review how the law addresses prostitution to ensure it better protects women and girls.The Home Office engages regularly with organisations that represent people who have engaged in prostitution/selling sex and people who have been sexually exploited, the police and other relevant stakeholders.
What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the proposals in the Earned Settlement consultation on staffing levels in the adult social care sector; and whether social care roles will be included within the public service consideration which reduces the baseline qualifying period for earned settlement.
The earned settlement model, proposed in ‘A Fairer Pathway to Settlement’, announced changes to the mandatory requirements and qualifying period for indefinite leave to remain. It is currently subject to a public consultation, running until 12 February 2026.As part of this consultation, we are seeking views on the potential impact of the proposed changes on different groups, including those working in sectors such as social care. Details of the earned settlement model will be finalised following that consultation.The final proposals will also be subject to full economic and equality impact assessments, which we have committed to publish in due course.
What additional resources she plans to provide to ensure the police can meet the expectation set out in the Freedom From Violence and Abuse Strategy for police forces to follow the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme.
We know that more needs to be done to ensure the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme is as effective as it can be for victims and survivors.We are working closely with the Independent Office for Police and Conduct and National Centre for Violence Against Women and Girls and Public Protection to review the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme, and better understand the barriers forces face when applying the statutory guidance, including any resourcing implications.In the VAWG Strategy, we committed to create a clearer, more consistent framework for police and other agencies to improve implementation of the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme. We will also develop and roll out a digital tool, to support the police to make better decisions when disclosing to victims and survivors.
What her planned timetable is for reviewing the legal framework for domestic abuse.
The Home Office is conducting a scoping review into the legal framework of domestic abuse to ensure it captures the experience of adolescents, which will conclude this year.
What proportion of the funding over the next three years in the Freedom From Violence and Abuse Strategy is a) new funding and b) a continuation of existing funds.
The cross‑government VAWG Strategy, published on 18 December 2025, sets out the strategic direction and concrete actions to prevent violence and abuse, pursue perpetrators, and support victims — delivering our unprecedented commitment to halve VAWG within a decade.The Strategy is underpinned by at least £1 billion of funding across government over the Spending Review period, alongside wider investment across government and existing commitments such as funding to put thousands more neighbourhood police officers on our streets.
With reference to her Department's policy paper entitled Policy paper Restoring control over the immigration system: white paper, published on 12 May 2025, whether she consulted civil society organisations providing services to (a) migrants experiencing (i) poverty and (ii) destitution and (b) other migrants prior to designing the (1) settlement and (2) citizenship changes proposed.
The Restoring control over the immigration system: white paper, sets out the government's plans to create an immigration system that promotes growth but is controlled and managed.We will be consulting on the new settlement rules later this year. Following that, we will provide details of how this initiative will work, including on any transitional arrangements for people already in the UK.The citizenship proposals will be developed in line with the settlement ones and further details on the proposed citizenship scheme will be provided at a suitable stage.
How many asylum seekers were dispersed in the asylum system while in the late stages of pregnancy in (a) 2022, (b) 2023 and (c) 2024; and how many of those dispersals were at the request of (i) the pregnant woman and (ii) her treating clinician.
The Home Office did not record this data in a reportable format for the years requested but has since developed a tool that should enable the Department to do so in the future. This is still being tested given the complexities involved.
Whether plans to extend the qualifying period for indefinite leave to remain will be applied to (a) UK Ancestry Visa holders and (b) other visa holders with the right to vote in general elections.
Settlement in the UK is a prerequisite for becoming a British citizen and brings lifelong benefits. Settlement is also an important step in integrating and contributing to local communities and the wider country.We will therefore reform the current rules around settlement so that individuals must earn their right to a privileged immigration status in the UK through the long-term contribution they bring to our country. We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and will provide details of how the scheme will work after that.
How many requests for deferred biometric enrolment from student visa applicants in Gaza have been (a) received, (b) refused and (c) accepted since 7 October 2023.
The Home Office does not currently publish data regarding the number of biometric deferral requests submitted or approved.The Home Office has put in place systems to issue expedited visas, with biometric checks conducted prior to arrival in the UK for all Chevening scholars from Gaza. We are in the process of doing the same for a group of students in Gaza who have been awarded fully funded scholarships covering course fees and living costs at UK universities so they can start their studies in Autumn 2025. The Government is doing everything it can to support their safe exit and onward travel to the UK. The situation on the ground in Gaza makes this extremely challenging.
With reference to the report by the Migration Advisory Committee entitled Family visa financial requirements review, published on 10 June 2025, if she will expedite her response to the recommendations relating to children; and what discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Education on those recommendations.
The report of the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) is now under review and the Home Office will respond to the review in due course.