Written questions by Stainbank.

With reference to the Statement on Asylum Policy of 17 of November, Official Report column 509, which international partners have raised similar concerns about the inability to apply the public interest to the Article 3 Absolute Right under the European Convention on Human Rights.

A number of Council of Europe members have expressed concern over the interpretation and application of the ECHR in the context of migration. An open letter of nine Council of Europe countries of 22 May 2025 called for "discussion about how international conventions match the challenges of today". We agree on the importance of addressing these challenges together and the Deputy Prime Minister will meet with other Justice Ministers at the Council of Europe on 10 December to set out the UK position and advance work on the ECHR reform agenda.

With reference to her Statement on Asylum Policy of 17 of November, Official Report column 509, what the qualifying tests for family reunion for refugees applying through the work and study route will be.

A refugee who is given core protection will have no automatic right to bring family to the UK. Refugees will be able to switch 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. This will enable them to earn down their length of time before they can settle in the UK from 20 years.The Government will set out the requirements and timelines in due course.

With reference to her Statement on Asylum Policy of 17 of November, Official Report column 509, how many failed asylum seekers are from a home country who is not a signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights in each year for which information is available.

The Home Office does not publish data on the number of failed asylum seekers, including those with exhausted appeal rights, from countries that are not signatories to the European Convention on Human Rights.Published asylum data is available in the Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release. The latest outcomes of asylum claims, as at July 2024, are in table Asy_D04 of the asylum detailed datasets. These figures should not be interpreted as the number of failed asylum seekers, as refusal outcomes may still be subject to review or appeal.As appeals information is not included, it is not possible to determine from published data how many individuals have become failed asylum seekers. Data on cases subject to removal is available in table Asy_03 of the transparency data.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the UK's withdrawal from the Dublin Regulation on the 31 of December 2020 on levels of irregular migration into the United Kingdom.

This government has not undertaken an assessment of the impact of the UK’s withdrawal from the Dublin arrangements in 2020. However, we are clear that cooperation with our EU partners is a crucial part of our response to the challenges posed by irregular migration. This is why the UK-France Agreement on the Prevention of Dangerous Journeys is so important, and why we will look at further such developments in future.

What assessment she has made of the adequacy of induction processes for new asylum seekers.

The Home Office recognises that individuals new to the UK and unfamiliar with the asylum process may have questions and uncertainties, and so it issues an information booklet to asylum claimants at the point of claim, which outlines the asylum process and the claimant’s responsibilities within it. The booklet (which is also available on GOV.UK) includes sections on legal advice, additional help and assistance, with links to relevant legal bodies and support organisations. New and existing asylum seekers are also able to contact in their own language the asylum helpline run by Migrant Help. The helpline provides information about the asylum process including asylum support and adapting to life in the UK. Migrant Help services are also available face-to-face in initial accommodation. All asylum processes, including those for new asylum seekers, are kept under review.

What discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for (a) Health and Social Care and (b) Work and Pensions on the (i) proposed increase in standard qualifying period for permanent residence and (ii) impact of that increase on workforce planning for their Departments.

The reforms in the Immigration White Paper, including the proposed increase in the standard qualifying period for settlement, were agreed across Government at a Home and Economic Affairs Committee the previous Home Secretary attended prior to publication on 12 May 2025. We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year. All will be welcome to participate. We will provide details of how the scheme will work after that consultation.

How many people have received indefinite leave to remain in 2025.

The Home Office publishes statistics relating to indefinite leave to remain in the Immigration system statistics publication. The latest data is available up to the end of June 2025.Data on grants of settlement can be found in table Se_D02 of the Settlement data tables. A settlement grant provides individuals with indefinite leave to remain in the UK.Data on EUSS grants are available in table EUSS_D02 of the EUSS data tables. Settled status is an indefinite leave to enter or remain in the UK, granted under the EUSS, which is available to EU, other EEA, and Swiss citizens who were residing in the UK that was launched in August 2018.Additionally, data on family visa grants, included those granted immediate settlement are published in table ‘Vis_D02’ of the detailed entry clearance visas dataset. You may be able to apply for indefinite leave to remain if you have a family member settled in the UK - either as a British citizen or a person with indefinite leave to remain.Information on how to use the dataset can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbook.

What engagement she has had with the Further Education sector in Scotland on the proposals in the Immigration White Paper to increase the standard qualifying period for permanent residence from five to ten years.

The reforms in the Immigration White Paper, including the proposed increase in the standard qualifying period for settlement, were agreed across Government at a Home and Economic Affairs Committee the previous Home Secretary attended prior to publication on 12 May 2025. We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year. All will be welcome to participate. We will provide details of how the scheme will work after that consultation.

What steps her Department is taking to support (a) local authorities and (b) police forces to manage tensions around asylum seeker housing.

The Home Office works closely with police, security teams, local authorities and other partners to ensure all accommodation sites are managed safely and securely. These key stakeholders regularly attend Multi-Agency Forums to provide updates and address any concerns raised within local communities.

How many Border Security Command operations have taken place outside of the United Kingdom since July 2024.

The Border Security Command is committed to working with international partners to tackle shared migration challenges and is working in multiple countries and regions to reduce the impact of organised immigration crime into the UK.Our international work seeks commitment to deepen cooperation, including through upstream intervention with source and transit countries. The relationships we have strengthened and the new agreements we have formed will allow us to disrupt and deter the criminal gangs, as demonstrated by our landmark agreements with Iraq, our new pilot scheme with France, and through the Joint Communique with Vietnam.Further to this, the Border Security Command (BSC) is working strategically across the Border Security system, including with partners such as the National Crime Agency, Police, and intelligence agencies.Working with the BSC, the National Crime Agency led 347 disruptions of organised immigration crime networks in 2024/25 – its highest level on record and a 40 per cent increase on the previous 12 months.

Whether she has considered the potential merits of allocating funding to the National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service.

The National Vehicle Intelligence Service (NaVCIS) is a national policing unit funded by industry, including finance and leasing companies, insurers and hauliers, to provide dedicated specialist intelligence and enforcement. NAVICS undertakes enforcement action at ports which are intelligence-led operations to tackle vehicle crime.Whilst the Government does not fund NaVCIS, we provided £250,000 last year to other law enforcement partners to help support enforcement at the ports to prevent stolen vehicles and vehicle parts being shipped abroad, including additional staff and specialist equipment.This Government is determined to drive down vehicle crime. We are working with the automotive industry and police, including the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead on the issue, to ensure the strongest response possible. I recently met the previous NPCC vehicle crime lead, ACC Jenny Sims, as well as other law enforcement representatives and representatives from industry, to discuss how we work together to tackle these damaging crimes.Via the recently established National Vehicle Crime Reduction Partnership and the police-led National Vehicle Crime Working Group, we are focusing on prevention and deterrence of theft of and from vehicles. This includes training police officers on the methods used to steal vehicles, encouraging vehicle owners to secure their vehicles, and working with industry to address vulnerabilities in vehicles.In the Crime and Policing Bill we have banned electronic devices used to steal vehicles, empowering the police and courts to target the criminals using, manufacturing, importing and supplying them.

Whether she plans to consult on further safeguarding measures following the introduction of the Disclosure and Barring Service new manual ID guidance in April 2025.

As an Executive Non-Departmental Public Body of the Home Office, the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) is operationally independent and therefore responsible for its own identity assurance policy.The recent update cited is part of a broader move towards modernised and more accessible DBS processes and are not linked to any other safeguarding regime issues that may be considered by the Secretary of State.

What recent steps her Department has taken to improve asylum claim processing times.

The Home Office continues to invest in a programme of transformation and business improvement, including innovative methods to speed up asylum decision making and improve the quality and consistency of our work.The latest quarter saw the second highest three-month period for people receiving initial decisions since comparable records began in 2002, and more than double (+116%) those in the three months before the election (April to June 2024).

With reference to the White Paper entitled Restoring control over the immigration system, published 12 May 2025, whether her Department's proposed changes to the qualifying period for settled status will apply to people who have acquired settled status but have not yet lived in the UK continuously for ten years.

We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and further details on the proposed scheme will be provided at the time.

When she plans to publish the reforms to allow a limited pool of UNHCR recognised refugees and displaced people living overseas to apply for employment through existing sponsored worker routes.

Refugees who have had to leave their home country because of persecution often lack the opportunity to apply for jobs and skilled worker visas in the UK, even where they have the talent and training to do so.The Home Office’s Displaced Talent Mobility Pilot ended on 1 November 2024. Its findings will inform consideration of further efforts to enable skilled refugees and displaced people to work in the UK.Further details of all the measures announced in our Immigration White Paper will be set out in due course.

What proportion of Short-Term Student (English Language) Route Visa applications refusals were due to belief that the applicant was applying to use the route without the intention to study.

Published data on short term student visas can be found here, Immigration system statistics quarterly release - GOV.UK including refusal volumes.Visa applications can be refused for a variety of reasons, and we do not publish data detailing these. Short term student visa applications must meet the criteria as published here; Short-term students caseworker guidance (accessible) - GOV.UK.

Whether non-Syrian nationals displaced by the Syrian civil war seeking asylum have had their claims paused following the general pause of Syrian asylum claims from December 2024.

Following the fall of the Assad regime, the Home Office withdrew the Country Policy Information Notes and guidance relating to Syria and has temporarily paused all asylum interviews and decisions. The pause also applies those who have previously been habitually resident in Syria. The pause is being kept under constant review and when there is a clear basis upon which to make decisions, we will resume the processing of them.

What information her Department holds on the average time taken to process an asylum claim after July 2024.

The specific data requested is not currently available from published statistics and could only be collated and verified for the purposes of answering this question at disproportionate cost.However, the Home Office does publish data on the number of asylum claims awaiting an initial decision by duration. This data can be found at table Asy_D02 of the ‘Asylum and resettlement summary tables’.Additionally, data on the percentage of applications processed within six months is published in table ASY_D03 of the ‘Immigration and Protection’ data of the Migration Transparency Data collection.We are restoring order to the asylum system so that every part – border security, case processing, appeals and returns – operates swiftly.As a result, asylum decision making increased by 52% in the last three months of 2024.The Home Office continues to take action to speed up asylum processing whilst maintaining the integrity of the system.

What information her Department holds on people who have been deported.

Statistics on the returns of foreign national offenders (FNOs) by nationality and destination are published on a quarterly basis. These returns are published in the Returns Detailed Datasets, and are currently available to the end of December 2024, which are available at: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK.In addition, a note providing an overview of the number of people who have been returned from the UK since 5 July 2024 was published on 31 March 2025, and can be found here: Returns from the UK from 5 July 2024 to 22 March 2025 - GOV.UK.3,594 FNOs were returned in this period, which is an increase of 16% compared to 3,101 FNO returns in the same period 12 months prior (FNO returns include both enforced and voluntary returns).Figures on deportations, which are a subset of enforced returns, are not separately available.We are committed to delivering justice for victims and safer streets for our communities. Foreign nationals who commit crime should be in no doubt that the law will be enforced and, where appropriate, we will pursue their deportation.

What guidance her Department has issued to refugees on the process of applying for indefinite leave to remain.

Guidance setting out the rules on settlement protection for refugees is available on GOV.UK at: Settlement protection.