Written questions by Philp.

When she plans to implement the £38,000 family visa salary threshold.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer I gave on 22 May to Question 52912.

With reference to the rules laid in Parliament on 12 March 2025 regarding social care, how a social care provider can prove that they have tried to recruit domestically before seeking to sponsor new recruits from overseas.

The Home Office will publish guidance for sponsors in line with the new rules coming into effect on 9 April.

With reference to the rules laid in Parliament on 12 March 2025 on care workers, how many social care workers have (a) been removed from the UK and (b) had their visas cancelled as a result of their sponsor losing their licence since 4 July 2024.

The information requested is not currently available from published statistics, and the relevant data could only be collated and verified for the purpose of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

With reference to the judgement in case UI-2024-005295 issued in the Upper Tribunal Immigration and Asylum Chamber on 13 January 2025, whether her Department has plans to appeal the judgement.

The Home Office does not routinely comment on individual cases or legal proceedings in which it is a participant.

If she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the Italian Government decision to use naval ships to transport migrants to Albania.

The Italian navy has competence for the transfer of migrants rescued in international waters to the centres in Albania run by the Italian government.As part of this Government’s expansion of international cooperation in the fight against Organised Immigration Crime, we constantly monitor the impact of the methods, techniques and technology that other partner nations and agencies are employing in that fight.The UK government is monitoring the Italian government implementation of their deal with Albania as an innovative approach to manage migration flows.

Whether she has plans to proscribe drug cartels as terrorist organisations.

The criteria for proscribing an organisation under the Terrorism Act 2000, and the Governments approach to commenting on those decisions remain exactly the same as they were when the Rt Hon Member was a Home Office Minister.

If she will use sanctions including visa penalties on countries that do not cooperate with the removal of their nationals.

Where cooperation with countries on returns falls below the levels expected, and where appropriate, we stand ready to use all levers available to us to encourage cooperation, including the power to impose visa penalties.

If she will accelerate deportations of (a) foreign national offenders and (b) illegal immigrants.

We pledged to deliver the highest rate of removals since 2018 and this has been surpassed, with a surge in returns activity since the election leading to nearly 19,000 people with no right to be in the UK being removed in the first six months this government was in office.That included 5,074 enforced returns of people with no legal right to remain in the UK, up 24% compared with the same period 12 months prior, and the removal of 2,925 foreign national offenders (FNOs) – a 21% increase on the same period 12 months prior (FNO returns include both enforced and voluntary returns).As part of the above, bespoke charter flights have removed immigration offenders to countries around the world, including 4 of the biggest returns flights in the UK’s history, carrying more than 800 people in total.This ramp-up reverses the decline in removals seen over the past 10 years and, as part of the government’s Plan for Change, is working to fix the foundations of a broken immigration system.Further details on this government’s returns activity since 5 July can be found here: Returns from the UK since 5 July 2024 - GOV.UK

If she will instruct the Southport public inquiry to make an assessment of the adequacy of public communications by the Government in the aftermath of those murders.

We are moving swiftly to set up the inquiry.We will consult the families and other interested parties on its scope to ensure all critical issues are addressed while remaining manageable and sensitive to the needs of those most affected.We will announce further details about the inquiry in due course.

What the average number of case file (a) rejections and (b) discontinuations by the Crown Prosecution Service was (i) before and (ii) after the introduction of the CONNECT computer software.

Police forces and Policing and Crime Commissioners are responsible for their procurement and commercial strategies for Records Management Systems.Each force is responsible for evaluating the performance of their Record Management System in line with those strategies and their local requirements.It would not be appropriate for the Home Office to comment on the individual performance of one supplier in relation to the factors mentioned.

What the average annual number is of case files rejected due to incorrectly submitted documents using (a) Case Overview and Prosecutions Application (COPA) and (b) CONNECT computer software.

Police forces and Policing and Crime Commissioners are responsible for their procurement and commercial strategies for Records Management Systems.Each force is responsible for evaluating the performance of their Record Management System in line with those strategies and their local requirements.It would not be appropriate for the Home Office to comment on the individual performance of one supplier in relation to the factors mentioned.

How much has been spent on the CONNECT computer software since its introduction by the Metropolitan Police on (a) further development of the software, (b) training including (i) accommodation, (ii) travel, (iii) classrooms, (iv) trainers and (v)overtime incurred by officers), (c) internal IT services to resolve CONNECT issues including ConnectHub, (d) shifts covered by officers to support staff with CONNECT, (e) initial purchase fees and installation, (f) other costs and (g) in total.

Police forces and Policing and Crime Commissioners are responsible for their procurement and commercial strategies for Records Management Systems.Each force is responsible for evaluating the performance of their Record Management System in line with those strategies and their local requirements.It would not be appropriate for the Home Office to comment on the individual performance of one supplier in relation to the factors mentioned.

What the average time spent by people in custody in police holding cells was in the two years (a) before and (b) after the introduction of the CONNECT software; and how many people have been detained in police holding cells by each police force for (i) 0 to 12 hours, (ii) 13 to 24 hours, (iii) 25 to 36 hours, (iv) 37 to 48 hours and (v) 49 hours or more since January 2019.

Police forces and Policing and Crime Commissioners are responsible for their procurement and commercial strategies for Records Management Systems.Each force is responsible for evaluating the performance of their Record Management System in line with those strategies and their local requirements.It would not be appropriate for the Home Office to comment on the individual performance of one supplier in relation to the factors mentioned.

How many police forces purchased CONNECT computer software; and how many such forces (a) no longer and (b) continue to use the software.

Police forces and Policing and Crime Commissioners are responsible for their procurement and commercial strategies for Records Management Systems.Each force is responsible for evaluating the performance of their Record Management System in line with those strategies and their local requirements.It would not be appropriate for the Home Office to comment on the individual performance of one supplier in relation to the factors mentioned.

What the average time it takes an officer to complete a case file is on (a) CONNECT and (b) Case Overview and Prosecutions Application (COPA).

Police forces and Policing and Crime Commissioners are responsible for their procurement and commercial strategies for Records Management Systems.Each force is responsible for evaluating the performance of their Record Management System in line with those strategies and their local requirements.It would not be appropriate for the Home Office to comment on the individual performance of one supplier in relation to the factors mentioned.

What the average number of open custody records was in (a) 2019, (b) 2022, (c) 2023 and (d) 2024.

The information requested is not currently held centrally.The Home Office collects and publishes data on detentions in police custody in England and Wales, available here: Police powers and procedures England and Wales statistics - GOV.UK.This data includes the number of detentions by financial year, with the most recently available data up to March 2023. Data for the year ending March 2024 will be available in February 2025.

With reference to the Answer of 16 December 2024 to Question 18968 on Asylum: Sri Lanka, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of relocating to St Helena asylum seekers who have travelled to the UK by small boat across the English Channel.

The specific purpose of the Memorandum of Understanding with St Helena was to deal with the risk of further migrants attempting to travel to the British Indian Ocean Territory, prior to the sovereignty agreement with Mauritius being formally completed. There are no plans to extend that agreement beyond its current remit.

Whether a Minister in her Department has chaired a meeting of the synthetic opioids taskforce; and how many times that taskforce has met since 5 July 2024.

Ministers are prioritising the risk of synthetic opioids as part of the wider long-term drug strategy. The Synthetic Opioids Taskforce is chaired by the Director General of the Public Safety Group at the Home Office on behalf of the Minister. The Taskforce meets quarterly, including on 3 July and most recently on 10 October 2024. It will next meet in January 2025 and Ministers are regularly briefed by officials on the response.Reducing drug harms has important benefits for the Government’s missions to deliver safer streets, improve health outcomes and break down barriers to opportunity, while supporting overall economic growth.

If she will publish a breakdown of crimes committed by nationality in each of the last five years for which data is available.

As the Rt Hon Member is aware, the Home Office collects and publishes information on the number of notifiable offences recorded by the police in England and Wales, on a quarterly basis, but Information on the nationality of offenders is not routinely collected and could only be collated and verified for the purposes of answering this question at disproportion cost.

If she will increase the salary threshold for family visas.

On 10th September the Home Secretary commissioned the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to review the financial requirements in the Family Immigration Rules. Conducting a review of the financial requirements across the family routes will ensure we have a clear and consistent system.The MAC ran a call for evidence from 16 September 2024 to 11 December 2024 which will inform their report, and any further changes to the financial requirements across the Family routes will be informed by their recommendations.