Written questions by McMurdock.

What assessment she has made of trends in online-enabled fraud, including investment fraud involving deepfake content, since 2020.

Fraud and cybercrime are deeply interconnected. The Office of National Statistics estimates that in year ending March 2024, nearly half of all frauds were online-enabled.The government’s Fraud Strategy (2026-2029) sets out the latest trends and evolving drivers of online fraud. Criminals routinely hijack online channels to socially engineer people into sending money directly, through fraudulent adverts or through convincing fraudulent emails and text messages. Criminals exploit data breaches, and use phishing techniques, to obtain personal information to takeover online accounts directly. We have also seen the growth of ‘fraud-as-a-service’ marketplaces, which lower the barrier to entry for new criminals.The government is aware that criminals have adopted generative AI as a tool to increase the scale and sophistication of attacks, as well to bypass company’s security procedures to impersonate customers for account takeovers. Measuring these types of attacks is a challenge as often victims will be unaware of whether AI has been used. While reports of AI enabled fraud are increasing, they still account for a fraction of all Report Fraud cases (0.2% in 2025); but it is almost certain that the true number of AI enabled frauds is much higher.We encourage anyone to report instances of online fraud to Report Fraud, the UK’s dedicated fraud reporting service, and visit the Stop! Think Fraud website for information on how they can stay safe from fraud.

With reference to her Department’s press release entitled Asylum handouts and accommodation removed for illegal migrants abusing Britain’s generosity, published on 5 March 2026, what process will be used to notify people when asylum support and accommodation are withdrawn.

The Government is developing a new framework for asylum support, including replacing the statutory duty to support with a discretionary power and making compliance with conditions, including not working illegally, a requirement of support. These measures, announced on 5 March, are intended to reduce misuse of support, not to make people homeless or deny support to those who genuinely need it and have no alternative means of supporting themselves. Policies are still being developed, and we have not made final estimates of the number of people who may lose asylum support or accommodation, the savings to the public purse, or the full impact on local authority homelessness services. However, an impact assessment will be published in due course and the Home Office continues to engage with MHCLG and other stakeholders to understand and mitigate any potential homelessness impacts. Asylum support will be targeted at those who are genuinely destitute and actively engaging with the asylum system. Decisions to withdraw support will be made on a case‑by‑case basis, with mitigating circumstances and vulnerabilities, including the needs of families with children, carefully considered. Individuals will be notified through established decision‑making processes, and clear guidance will be issued ahead of any changes. Where it comes to light that a claim for support has been made fraudulently, action will be taken to recover the support that has been paid.

With reference to her Department’s press release entitled Asylum handouts and accommodation removed for illegal migrants abusing Britain’s generosity, published on 5 March 2026, what estimate she has made of the savings to the public purse from removing asylum support and accommodation from individuals deemed to be abusing the asylum system.

The Government is developing a new framework for asylum support, including replacing the statutory duty to support with a discretionary power and making compliance with conditions, including not working illegally, a requirement of support. These measures, announced on 5 March, are intended to reduce misuse of support, not to make people homeless or deny support to those who genuinely need it and have no alternative means of supporting themselves. Policies are still being developed, and we have not made final estimates of the number of people who may lose asylum support or accommodation, the savings to the public purse, or the full impact on local authority homelessness services. However, an impact assessment will be published in due course and the Home Office continues to engage with MHCLG and other stakeholders to understand and mitigate any potential homelessness impacts. Asylum support will be targeted at those who are genuinely destitute and actively engaging with the asylum system. Decisions to withdraw support will be made on a case‑by‑case basis, with mitigating circumstances and vulnerabilities, including the needs of families with children, carefully considered. Individuals will be notified through established decision‑making processes, and clear guidance will be issued ahead of any changes. Where it comes to light that a claim for support has been made fraudulently, action will be taken to recover the support that has been paid.

With reference to her Department’s press release entitled Asylum handouts and accommodation removed for illegal migrants abusing Britain’s generosity, published on 5 March 2026, what guidance will be issued to accommodation providers and local authorities regarding the removal of asylum accommodation.

The Government is developing a new framework for asylum support, including replacing the statutory duty to support with a discretionary power and making compliance with conditions, including not working illegally, a requirement of support. These measures, announced on 5 March, are intended to reduce misuse of support, not to make people homeless or deny support to those who genuinely need it and have no alternative means of supporting themselves. Policies are still being developed, and we have not made final estimates of the number of people who may lose asylum support or accommodation, the savings to the public purse, or the full impact on local authority homelessness services. However, an impact assessment will be published in due course and the Home Office continues to engage with MHCLG and other stakeholders to understand and mitigate any potential homelessness impacts. Asylum support will be targeted at those who are genuinely destitute and actively engaging with the asylum system. Decisions to withdraw support will be made on a case‑by‑case basis, with mitigating circumstances and vulnerabilities, including the needs of families with children, carefully considered. Individuals will be notified through established decision‑making processes, and clear guidance will be issued ahead of any changes. Where it comes to light that a claim for support has been made fraudulently, action will be taken to recover the support that has been paid.

With reference to her Department’s press release entitled Asylum handouts and accommodation removed for illegal migrants abusing Britain’s generosity, published on 5 March 2026, what estimate her Department has made of the number of people who may lose asylum support and accommodation under the new policy.

The Government is developing a new framework for asylum support, including replacing the statutory duty to support with a discretionary power and making compliance with conditions, including not working illegally, a requirement of support. These measures, announced on 5 March, are intended to reduce misuse of support, not to make people homeless or deny support to those who genuinely need it and have no alternative means of supporting themselves. Policies are still being developed, and we have not made final estimates of the number of people who may lose asylum support or accommodation, the savings to the public purse, or the full impact on local authority homelessness services. However, an impact assessment will be published in due course and the Home Office continues to engage with MHCLG and other stakeholders to understand and mitigate any potential homelessness impacts. Asylum support will be targeted at those who are genuinely destitute and actively engaging with the asylum system. Decisions to withdraw support will be made on a case‑by‑case basis, with mitigating circumstances and vulnerabilities, including the needs of families with children, carefully considered. Individuals will be notified through established decision‑making processes, and clear guidance will be issued ahead of any changes. Where it comes to light that a claim for support has been made fraudulently, action will be taken to recover the support that has been paid.

With reference to her Department’s press release entitled Asylum handouts and accommodation removed for illegal migrants abusing Britain’s generosity, published on 5 March 2026, whether asylum seekers deemed to be capable of supporting themselves financially will be expected to contribute towards any of their prior accommodation costs, backdated to when they were deemed to have become financially capable.

The Government is developing a new framework for asylum support, including replacing the statutory duty to support with a discretionary power and making compliance with conditions, including not working illegally, a requirement of support. These measures, announced on 5 March, are intended to reduce misuse of support, not to make people homeless or deny support to those who genuinely need it and have no alternative means of supporting themselves. Policies are still being developed, and we have not made final estimates of the number of people who may lose asylum support or accommodation, the savings to the public purse, or the full impact on local authority homelessness services. However, an impact assessment will be published in due course and the Home Office continues to engage with MHCLG and other stakeholders to understand and mitigate any potential homelessness impacts. Asylum support will be targeted at those who are genuinely destitute and actively engaging with the asylum system. Decisions to withdraw support will be made on a case‑by‑case basis, with mitigating circumstances and vulnerabilities, including the needs of families with children, carefully considered. Individuals will be notified through established decision‑making processes, and clear guidance will be issued ahead of any changes. Where it comes to light that a claim for support has been made fraudulently, action will be taken to recover the support that has been paid.

With reference to her Department’s press release entitled Asylum handouts and accommodation removed for illegal migrants abusing Britain’s generosity, published on 5 March 2026, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the policy on local authority homelessness services; and what protections will be in place to ensure those local authorities are not expected to provide additional support due to this policy.

The Government is developing a new framework for asylum support, including replacing the statutory duty to support with a discretionary power and making compliance with conditions, including not working illegally, a requirement of support. These measures, announced on 5 March, are intended to reduce misuse of support, not to make people homeless or deny support to those who genuinely need it and have no alternative means of supporting themselves. Policies are still being developed, and we have not made final estimates of the number of people who may lose asylum support or accommodation, the savings to the public purse, or the full impact on local authority homelessness services. However, an impact assessment will be published in due course and the Home Office continues to engage with MHCLG and other stakeholders to understand and mitigate any potential homelessness impacts. Asylum support will be targeted at those who are genuinely destitute and actively engaging with the asylum system. Decisions to withdraw support will be made on a case‑by‑case basis, with mitigating circumstances and vulnerabilities, including the needs of families with children, carefully considered. Individuals will be notified through established decision‑making processes, and clear guidance will be issued ahead of any changes. Where it comes to light that a claim for support has been made fraudulently, action will be taken to recover the support that has been paid.

With reference to her Department’s press release entitled Visa brake imposed on 4 countries after widespread visa abuse, published on 4 March 2026, what estimate she has made of the number of asylum claims expected to be prevented by the visa brake policy.

It is estimated that the brake will reduce the number of asylum claims from migrants arriving in the UK on visas by 1,400 over an 18-month period.The brake does not cancel existing visas, nor does it change the conditions of visas already granted.

With reference her Department’s press release entitled Visa brake imposed on 4 countries after widespread visa abuse, published on 4 March 2026, whether the block will apply to applicants who have been granted a visa but have not yet arrived in the UK.

It is estimated that the brake will reduce the number of asylum claims from migrants arriving in the UK on visas by 1,400 over an 18-month period.The brake does not cancel existing visas, nor does it change the conditions of visas already granted.

With reference to her Department’s press release entitled Asylum handouts and accommodation removed for illegal migrants abusing Britain’s generosity, published on 5 March 2026, what information her department holds on the number of asylum seekers who are illegally working.

Home Office holds details of people claiming asylum who have been encountered during illegal working enforcement visits. This data only reflects those detected through enforcement activity and cannot be used to estimate the number of asylum seekers who may be working illegally more generally.Once the changes announced on 5 March 2026 become law, if, following an investigation, there are reasonable grounds to suspect that an asylum seeker is working illegally, their support may be suspended or discontinued.

Pursuant to her Department’s press release entitled Visa brake imposed on 4 countries after widespread visa abuse, published on 4 March 2026, how many illegal migrants have been deported to Namibia since 2025, and how many remain in the UK.

Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Namibia are not in scope for the visa brake. These governments were threatened with the imposition of visa penalties last year specifically in order to improve co-operation in the return of individuals with no right to be in the UK, as provided for by sections 70-74 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022. This is distinct from the visa brake.Since these threats, returns co-operation with all three governments has rapidly and significantly improved and returns that previously would not have been possible are now taking place. Each government now complies with the UK’s standard. Statistics on returns will be published on gov.uk as usual.The Home Office keeps the returns cooperation of all its international partners under close and regular review and will not hesitate to take further action where needed.

Pursuant to her Department’s press release entitled Visa brake imposed on 4 countries after widespread visa abuse, published on 4 March 2026, how many illegal migrants have been deported to the Democratic Republic of Congo since 2025, and how many remain in the UK.

Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Namibia are not in scope for the visa brake. These governments were threatened with the imposition of visa penalties last year specifically in order to improve co-operation in the return of individuals with no right to be in the UK, as provided for by sections 70-74 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022. This is distinct from the visa brake.Since these threats, returns co-operation with all three governments has rapidly and significantly improved and returns that previously would not have been possible are now taking place. Each government now complies with the UK’s standard. Statistics on returns will be published on gov.uk as usual.The Home Office keeps the returns cooperation of all its international partners under close and regular review and will not hesitate to take further action where needed.

Pursuant to her Department’s press release entitled Visa brake imposed on 4 countries after widespread visa abuse, published on 4 March 2026, what discussions she has had with the higher education sector regarding the introduction of the visa brake affecting applicants from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan.

Following the announcement of the visa brake on 4th March, information to help sponsoring institutions understand what the change means for them has been shared with them via regular channels, including an operational forum held with sector representatives.

Pursuant to her Department’s press release entitled Visa brake imposed on 4 countries after widespread visa abuse, published on 4 March 2026, how many illegal migrants have been deported to Angola since 2025, and how many remain in the UK.

Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Namibia are not in scope for the visa brake. These governments were threatened with the imposition of visa penalties last year specifically in order to improve co-operation in the return of individuals with no right to be in the UK, as provided for by sections 70-74 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022. This is distinct from the visa brake.Since these threats, returns co-operation with all three governments has rapidly and significantly improved and returns that previously would not have been possible are now taking place. Each government now complies with the UK’s standard. Statistics on returns will be published on gov.uk as usual.The Home Office keeps the returns cooperation of all its international partners under close and regular review and will not hesitate to take further action where needed.

Pursuant to her Department’s press release entitled Visa brake imposed on 4 countries after widespread visa abuse, published on 4 March 2026, how long the visa brake on nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar, and Sudan is expected to remain in place.

The visa brake will be kept under regular review and is not intended to be permanent; it will only be lifted when the Government considers it appropriate to do so. Since 2021, there have been over 5,300 asylum claims from nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar, and Sudan, who originally arrived on student visas. It is estimated that the brake will prevent 4,300 study visas from being issued to the affected cohorts over an 18-month period. We do not rule out wider action to address visa linked asylum claims. The UK keeps its visa system under continuous review, with any future changes informed by evidence and a range of relevant factors.

Pursuant to her Department’s press release entitled Visa brake imposed on 4 countries after widespread visa abuse, published on 4 March 2026, what estimate she has made of the number of student visas that will not be issued as a result of the visa brake.

The visa brake will be kept under regular review and is not intended to be permanent; it will only be lifted when the Government considers it appropriate to do so. Since 2021, there have been over 5,300 asylum claims from nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar, and Sudan, who originally arrived on student visas. It is estimated that the brake will prevent 4,300 study visas from being issued to the affected cohorts over an 18-month period. We do not rule out wider action to address visa linked asylum claims. The UK keeps its visa system under continuous review, with any future changes informed by evidence and a range of relevant factors.

With reference to her Department’s press release entitled Visa brake imposed on 4 countries after widespread visa abuse, published on 4 March 2026, whether she plans to expand visa bans to more countries.

The visa brake will be kept under regular review and is not intended to be permanent; it will only be lifted when the Government considers it appropriate to do so. Since 2021, there have been over 5,300 asylum claims from nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar, and Sudan, who originally arrived on student visas. It is estimated that the brake will prevent 4,300 study visas from being issued to the affected cohorts over an 18-month period. We do not rule out wider action to address visa linked asylum claims. The UK keeps its visa system under continuous review, with any future changes informed by evidence and a range of relevant factors.

With reference to her Department’s press release entitled Visa brake imposed on 4 countries after widespread visa abuse, published on 4 March 2026, what information her Department holds on the number of people on student visas from (a) Afghanistan, (b) Cameroon, (c) Myanmar and (d) Sudan who have attempted to obtain asylum and (i) succeeded and (ii) failed.

The visa brake will be kept under regular review and is not intended to be permanent; it will only be lifted when the Government considers it appropriate to do so. Since 2021, there have been over 5,300 asylum claims from nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar, and Sudan, who originally arrived on student visas. It is estimated that the brake will prevent 4,300 study visas from being issued to the affected cohorts over an 18-month period. We do not rule out wider action to address visa linked asylum claims. The UK keeps its visa system under continuous review, with any future changes informed by evidence and a range of relevant factors.

Pursuant to her Department’s press release entitled Visa brake imposed on 4 countries after widespread visa abuse, published on 4 March 2026, what cap will be applied to the number of asylum seekers who can use the Government’s pledged safe and legal routes.

As set out in the Restoring Order and Control policy statement, the Government remains committed to the introduction of capped safe and legal routes for refugees and displaced people to come to the United Kingdom. Work is underway to develop these routes, including confirming the eligibility criteria and the number of places to be made available for each new safe and legal route.It is essential that any safe and legal routes are sustainable, well managed, and aligned with the United Kingdom’s capacity to welcome, accommodate and integrate refugees. Work is underway to operationalise these new routes and further details will be provided in due course.

With reference to her Department’s press release entitled Refugee protection to be reviewed every 30 months, published on 2 March 2026, what estimate she has made of the proportionate reduction in asylum applications that would arise from these changes.

Any adult or accompanied child who claims asylum on or after 2 March 2026 and is granted refugee status or humanitarian protection will be given ‘Core Protection’, for a period of 30 months. This change is intended to reduce the pull factors behind high numbers of asylum claims, by moving towards a more temporary refugee status with regular reviews.Importantly, the core protection model encourages refugees 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. It also allows the Government to exert more control over those entering the UK.While the Government has not set any formal target for a reduction in asylum claims, experience in other countries, including Denmark, suggests that less generous and less permanent protection can reduce application numbers over time. Our focus remains on making the system fairer, providing protection only for as long as it is needed, and encouraging people to use safe and legal routes.