Every parliamentary written question tabled by Kate Osamor this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 21–31 of 31 · Home Office
If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of exempting migrants from the Immigration Health Surcharge after their second Leave to Remain application.
The Home Office keeps all aspects of the immigration system under regular review, in consultation with a wide range of experts and stakeholders, and we will set out our overall approach to reforming the immigration system in our upcoming white paper.
If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of exempting migrants in employment from the Immigration Health Surcharge.
The Home Office keeps all aspects of the immigration system under regular review, in consultation with a wide range of experts and stakeholders, and we will set out our overall approach to reforming the immigration system in our upcoming white paper.
What steps she is taking to help protect the safety of home delivery drivers.
This Government is committed to tackling retail crime. Through our Crime and Policing Bill, we have introduced a standalone offence of assaulting a retail worker to protect the hardworking and dedicated staff that work in stores.Our definition of a ‘retail worker’ is intentionally narrow given the vital need to provide legal clarity and ensure there is no ambiguity for courts in identifying whether an individual is a retail worker and impacted during their job.Assaults against delivery drivers are already an offence (common assault) under the Criminal Justice Act 1988, and are covered under other legislation such as the Offences against the Person Act 1861, which also covers more serious violence, including actual bodily harm and grievous bodily harm.Section 156 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 creates a statutory aggravating factor in sentencing cases of assault against public facing workers. It applies where an assault is committed against those providing a public service, performing a public duty or providing a service to the public. This includes those working in retail and other public-facing roles.We will use the parliamentary process to scrutinise the provisions in the Bill and will consider carefully amendments tabled as well as evidence put forward in support of such amendments.
What steps her Department is taking to help ensure that buy now pay later schemes protect consumers from fraud.
This Government is continuing to work closely with industry, including payment service providers, to prevent fraud and we welcome the actions of the financial services industry to date.We committed in our manifesto to introduce an expanded Fraud Strategy. The new strategy will cover a range of harms including those committed through payment services. Development of this Strategy has begun, and we are engaging with stakeholders across law enforcement, industry, and civil society to identify new measures to better protect the public and businesses.However, work continues to ensure that the public are better equipped to spot and avoid frauds, through our Stop! Think Fraud campaign. Similarly, as of March 2025, the Online Safety Act’s illegal content duties are now enforceable by Ofcom. This has the potential to cut off key online channels by which criminals are able to identify and communicate with potential victims.
Pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2025 to Question 32013 on Asylum, whether she has commissioned any reports on expanding (a) safe and (b) legal routes for people seeking asylum within the last twelve months.
This country will always play our part, alongside others, to help those fleeing war and persecution, but we need a proper system where rules are enforced.The UK welcomes refugees through our global resettlement schemes which include the UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS), Community Sponsorship and the Mandate Resettlement Scheme. We continue to keep all policies under review.The numbers resettled through the UKRS depend on a range of factors including the flow of referrals from UNHCR in the field and the availability of suitable accommodation and integration support in the UK.
Whether she has had recent discussions with representatives of Border Force on the potential impact of channel crossings on staff wellbeing.
We recognise the work of Border Force staff in relation to channel crossings and continue to ensure support is in place for them. All Border Force colleagues have access to peer support on a 24/7 basis, allowing them to speak to a volunteer who is trained in Mental Health First Aid (MHFA), Trauma Risk Management (TRiM), Applied Suicide Intervention Skills (ASIST) or Sustaining Resilience at Work (StRaW). All operational colleagues have access to the Police Treatment Centres, which support recovery from a variety of physical and mental ailments on a residential basis.The Border Force Wellbeing team also manage the Border Force Wellbeing Hub and run a variety of events throughout the year on key wellbeing themes, including stress, anxiety, shift working and health. Border Force line managers are also trained with the information and tools to discuss wellbeing and mental health with their teams, how to spot the warning signs and how to refer a team member for further help.All Home Office staff also have access to the Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) which provides support for a wide variety of issues.
Whether she has had recent discussions with representatives of third sector organisations on support for refugees outside the UK.
This country will always play our part, alongside others, to help those fleeing war and persecution, but we need a proper system where rules are enforced.The UK welcomes refugees through our global resettlement schemes which include the UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS), Community Sponsorship and the Mandate Resettlement Scheme. We continue to keep all policies under review.The numbers resettled through the UKRS depend on a range of factors including the flow of referrals from UNHCR in the field and the availability of suitable accommodation and integration support in the UK.
If she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the Public and Commercial Services Union and Care4Calais report entitled, Safe and Secure Routes: Refugee Visa-to-Travel Proposal, published on 25 March 2025.
This country will always play our part, alongside others, to help those fleeing war and persecution, but we need a proper system where rules are enforced.The UK welcomes refugees through our global resettlement schemes which include the UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS), Community Sponsorship and the Mandate Resettlement Scheme. We continue to keep all policies under review.The numbers resettled through the UKRS depend on a range of factors including the flow of referrals from UNHCR in the field and the availability of suitable accommodation and integration support in the UK.
What assessment she has made of the potential impact of expanding safe and legal routes available to asylum seekers on the numbers of small boats crossing the Channel.
The UK continues to welcome refugees and people in need through our existing global resettlement schemes which include the UK Resettlement Scheme (UKRS), Community Sponsorship and the Mandate Resettlement Scheme. Safe and legal routes will continue to play a vital role in our overall migration system. However, given the scale of today’s global displacement challenges, it is not possible to offer a pathway into the UK to every person who needs or wants one. Those who need international protection should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach – that is the fastest route to safety.
What recent estimate her Department has made of the number of families that have no recourse to public funds.
The availability of data in respect of the number of families that have No Recourse to Public Funds condition is currently limited, while the Home Office transitions its casework operations to a new management information system until the transition proce...
How many applicants for compensation under the Windrush Compensation Scheme have died while waiting for a decision on their application.
As at the end of June 2024, in line with the latest published Transparency data, out of the 8,607 claims received by the Windrush Compensation Scheme, we are aware of 56 claimants* who have unfortunately passed away after having submitted a claim.The Windrush Compensation Scheme staff are working hard to ensure claims are prioritised for claimants with critical or life-limiting illnesses and would encourage any claimants in this situation who have not been in recent contact with our casework teams to do so. We recognise the significant impact difficult circumstances such as these can have on individuals, and their families, and we remain committed to continually improving our support and services.In the difficult circumstances where a claimant has passed away after submitting a compensation claim, before the claim is fully resolved, the team is committed to working closely with the representative of the estate, usually a member of the family, to ensure the compensation payment is made as quickly as possible to the representative.Our priority is to ensure people receive the maximum compensation as quickly as possible. We have reduced the time to allocate a claim for a substantive casework consideration, from 18 months to under 4 months, with the aim to allocate quicker where possible. This period includes all essential eligibility checks, together with a Preliminary Assessment to make an initial payment of £10k wherever possible.*Please note that this data is manually recorded and is reliant on the person receiving the information on a claimant’s death, notifying the Windrush Compensation Scheme to record this information.