PCSOs: Neighbourhood Crime
(Cambridge) (Lab)
1. What recent assessment she has made of the importance of
police community support officers in tackling neighbourhood
crime.(905727)
The Secretary of State for the Home Department ()
The whole House will be united in horror and revulsion at Putin’s
war on Ukraine. I will update the House on the action that we are
taking to help British nationals and Ukrainians and to hold
Russia and Putin’s Government to account later in Question Time.
For now, I want to reiterate the Government’s unequivocal support
for the people of Ukraine, who are being truly heroic.
I echo the Home Secretary’s comments and am sure that we will
extend a generous and gracious invitation to those fleeing from
Ukraine.
In the year to September 2021, 1.7 million cases of antisocial
behaviour were reported to the police. In Cambridge, I have more
and more people coming to me with problems. We used to have
police community support officers, who were a welcoming,
reassuring, uniformed presence on our streets. Where are they
now?
Strong local policing is absolutely in the DNA of neighbourhood
policing. The hon. Gentleman will be well aware that this
Government are not only funding but backing the police, with
almost £15.9 billion in this financial year, and increasing
police numbers to 20,000. He will also know that his local police
recruitment numbers have gone up and that his local force has
already recruited 138 police officers.
(Wycombe) (Con)
I was very pleased to see Thames Valley police launch a new
recruitment campaign for PCSOs. Will my right hon. Friend join me
in thanking PCSOs for all they do to support the people in
Wycombe and across Thames valley and the whole country? Will she
also join me in welcoming that campaign and encouraging people to
apply?
I agree and congratulate Thames Valley police force; it has
exceptional leadership and all officers there and across the
country are doing great work. That recruitment campaign is vital
and is going incredibly well. We have just over 11,000 new police
recruits and officers on the streets of England and Wales and the
numbers will grow and grow. Of course, this is all about keeping
our communities safe.
(Kingston upon Hull West and
Hessle) (Lab)
The PCSOs are doing a fantastic job of supporting residents with
regard to the increase in car crime happening in one area of
Hull. What particularly upsets residents, however, is seeing
those criminals uploading videos to TikTok and celebrating their
crimes. Will the Home Secretary update us on what her Department
is doing to work with social media companies to help them
identify evidence of criminality and support police
investigations?
The hon. Lady is right, and she will recognise that criminals who
upload videos absolutely are pursued by the police and law
enforcement agencies to bring them to justice. She asked
specifically about work with technology companies and online
platforms and providers. That is always ongoing, including
through some of the wider work relating to the online harms
Bill.
(Totnes) (Con)
The increase in police officers in the south-west is welcome, but
what is being done to tackle drugs, and will the Home Secretary
meet me to see what we can do to stop antisocial behaviour
happening in towns such as Brixham and Dartmouth?
My hon. Friend is absolutely right; drugs are a scourge across
society and they blight communities. We have a great deal of work
taking place on drugs, and I will happily meet him and any
colleagues to discuss that. Not only do we, first and foremost,
have the county lines programme, but we believe in supporting
individuals who suffer from addiction, and that is exactly what
Project ADDER is doing.
Sexual Violence: Nationality and Borders Bill
(Glasgow Central)
(SNP)
2. What assessment has she made of the potential effect of the
Nationality and Borders Bill for people who have experienced
sexual violence.(905728)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
The Government recognise that sexual violence is a devastating
crime that has a long-lasting impact on victims. The Nationality
and Borders Bill, which is part of our new plan for immigration,
will strengthen our ability to protect vulnerable people. On 16
September, we published an equality impact assessment, which
includes an assessment of the potential impact on people who may
have experienced sexual violence.
Last week, a joint letter with more than 60 signatories across
Scottish civil society, including Rape Crisis Scotland, Amina
Muslim Women’s Resource Centre, the Trafficking Awareness Raising
Alliance, SAY Women and the Women’s Integration Network,
criticised the Nationality and Borders Bill, saying:
“It is a gift to abusers and exploiters, and we have no doubt
that it will harm survivors of sexual violence, gender-based
violence and those who flee persecution.”
Scotland wants no part of the Bill. It is not in our name. Will
the Minister take the opportunity to remove the Bill now?
I hear what the hon. Lady says. I am sure that people in Scotland
are as concerned as the Government are about people risking their
lives in the hands of evil people smugglers, making dangerous
crossings of the channel, and all the risks that that presents to
life. The fact is that sensible discretion will be built into the
whole approach, with various checks throughout, good reasons and
a trauma-informed approach. That is precisely what we have
committed to; it is exactly what we will deliver.
Violence Against Women and Girls
(Scunthorpe) (Con)
4. What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the
Government’s tackling violence against women and girls
strategy.(905730)
(Rother Valley)
(Con)
5. What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the
Government’s tackling violence against women and girls
strategy.(905731)
The Secretary of State for the Home Department ()
As part of the violence against women and girls strategy launched
last July, we are bringing forward legislation against stalking,
forced marriage, female genital mutilation and wider domestic
abuse. The strategy is overseen by the VAWG inter-ministerial
group, which I chair.
Does my right hon. Friend recognise the importance of the
continuing work of police and crime commissioner , his team and the
Humberside police service on the You Are Not Alone campaign,
which aims to raise awareness of support for victims of domestic
violence and, indeed, perpetrators? I think that it is really
important work, and I hope that she will recognise it.
I thank my hon. Friend for her comment and for the work that the
police and crime commissioner and her local police force are
undertaking. The You Are Not Alone campaign was launched during
the pandemic. I recommend it to anyone who is a victim of any
form of domestic abuse or violence. It is a successful campaign,
and I pay tribute to police and crime commissioners and to our
police officers across the country, who have been supporting it
and making sure that they provide support to victims of
abuse.
My right hon. Friend will be aware that the shadow policing
Minister, the hon. Member for Croydon Central (), has said:
“Harsher sentences don’t act as a deterrent.”
Will my right hon. Friend confirm that that is wrong, that
harsher sentences actually do work, and that we are prepared to
put domestic abusers and violent and sexual offenders behind bars
for longer to make our streets, especially in Rother Valley,
safer for women and girls?
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. It is right that we change
our laws, have tougher sentences and make sure that perpetrators
absolutely feel the full force of the law. He is right to make
that case. The Government are also undertaking wider work on
perpetrator behaviour and education campaigns across all
Departments.
(Ealing Central and Acton)
(Lab)
We all agree that women should be able to go about their lawful
business free from intimidation and able to use public spaces,
yet every day thousands are affected by protests outside abortion
clinics that are designed to shame women out of their legal
rights to healthcare. Will the Secretary of State meet me to
ensure that we have consistency nationally on the situation and
that protesters who seek to control women’s bodies and stop them
making choices are stopped and moved away from the clinic
gates?
I commend the hon. Lady for much of the work that she has been
doing. I would be very happy to meet her. All the points she
raises are absolutely valid: women should be able to go about
living their lives freely, safely and without harassment.
(Inverclyde) (SNP)
The all-party parliamentary group on commercial sexual
exploitation is conducting an inquiry into the pornography
industry in response to growing concerns that online pornography
is fuelling violence against women and girls. Will the Government
establish the necessary legal framework to prevent and address
the harm associated with the production and consumption of
pornography?
The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. I agree with the
sentiments that he echoes and would be very happy to meet him to
discuss the matter. There are many, many legitimate concerns
about pornography and the wider harms—age access, age
verification and all sorts of issues, some of which the
Government are picking up right now. The online harms Bill is one
area, but there are other things that we can and should be
doing.
(Birmingham, Yardley)
(Lab)
Since the publication of the VAWG strategy, rape charging has
fallen to an all-time low, leaving more people accused of rape in
communities than ever before. Operation Bluestone found that the
monitoring of previous offenders was failing to use
“intelligence to establish whether suspects had been named in
previous offences.”
Operation Soteria found that
“officers were not routinely monitoring known offenders of sexual
crimes”,
leading to a “total lack of morale” among police. This week the
inspectorate said that alleged rapists were escaping justice,
citing a case in which an alleged rapist was acquitted after the
police and the Crown Prosecution Service had failed to present
evidence in court showing that he had allegedly raped two other
people previously.
I ask the Home Secretary to set out for the House exactly where,
in the strategy and in her plans, are the proper monitoring and
offender management that will stop any offender, let alone the
most violent and repeat rapists, because that is not even nearly
happening now.
As the hon. Lady will know, both the rape review and the criminal
justice taskforce have been clear and explicit about the actions
that are being taken across Government. Operation Soteria, which
she mentioned, is being rolled out to 14 other police forces. It
is important for us to fix these key gateways—the way in which
the police investigate cases, the handovers to the Crown
Prosecution Service, and how it all works throughout the criminal
justice system—and that is being done as a result of the rape
review and work with the Justice Secretary. [Interruption.] I
hear the hon. Member for Aberavon () talking about “12 years”,
but the rape review report was published last year. This
Government are fixing many of the long-established problems in
the criminal justice system that have led to some of the most
appalling outcomes. We can all agree, if on nothing else, on the
need to fix those appalling outcomes for rape victims.
(Wrexham) (Con)
North Wales police recently received half a million pounds of UK
funding for the safer streets and safety of women at night
campaigns. Having been out with the police on foot patrol, I ask
my right hon. Friend to join me in congratulating Inspector
Claire McGrady of Wrexham town police and Wrexham Council on
acknowledging the issues involved, increasing CCTV and lighting
provision, and providing a weekend welfare centre.
My hon. Friend is right; the safer streets fund and many other
initiatives that the Government are leading to protect citizens
and the safety of women across our communities are making a
difference. The work of police forces with police and crime
commissioners demonstrates how targeted resources can keep the
public safe, and give the public, including women, confidence in
their communities.
(Rochdale) (Lab)
The Home Secretary has talked in a muscular fashion about the
need for exemplary punishment of the perpetrators of violence
against women and girls. She will recall her commitment to the
deportation, where appropriate, of offenders in Rochdale, and
indeed in other parts of the country. She also committed herself
to meeting me to discuss the issue, and I still await that
meeting. May I have an update?
Absolutely. The hon. Gentleman is entirely right. I cannot speak
about that case in the House, and he will know exactly why, but I
will meet him to go through the specific details.
(Burton) (Con)
The work of organisations such as the Sexual Abuse and Rape
Advice Centre in my constituency is vital. I have seen at first
hand how SARAC supports survivors of rape and domestic abuse. Can
my right hon. Friend assure me that she will work with such
organisations to ensure that they have a chance to feed in their
expertise on how we can support victims and tackle violence
against women and girls?
I congratulate my hon. Friend on the work that she has personally
led in campaigning and raising awareness, and also on the work of
her local organisations—I have visited her constituency in the
context of other issues. The role of the third sector is vital;
it provides an important gateway and a lifeline for so many, and
of course the Government continue to support it.
Citizenship: Legislative Framework
(West
Dunbartonshire) (SNP)
6. Whether she plans to review the legislative framework for
granting citizenship.(905732)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
While we do not plan a wider review, the Nationality and Borders
Bill will make several changes to the British Nationality Act
1981, allowing people to acquire citizenship where they had
previously been unable to do so because of historical
anomalies.
It is often overlooked that this political state shares a common
travel area with our neighbours across the sheuch, as some of us
would call it. I dare say that, from citizenship frameworks to
asylum policy, this Government have a lot to learn from Ireland
about implementing humane and just policy for those coming to the
UK. What steps, if any, has the Department taken in recent days
to learn from the best practice seen in the Republic of Ireland
in terms of its legislative frameworks for citizenship?
We always look at the practices in other countries, and I would
point out that our visitor route is more generous than the
equivalent in the Republic of Ireland. I am actually meeting an
Irish Minister later today. We are looking at how we can amend
nationality law to make processing slightly easier so that we no
longer need to look into people’s past immigration history, but
we have already done that recently in relation to a grant of
indefinite leave to remain or settled status under the EU
settlement scheme.
(North Wiltshire) (Con)
I congratulate the Government on changing the rules last week
with regard to Commonwealth soldiers, who will no longer have to
pay for their citizenship if they have served for six years. That
was a great decision and I thank the Government very much for it.
Does the Minister agree that similar flexibility will be needed
in the near future with regard to Afghan refugees who are based
here? A young family came to see me in my surgery last Saturday.
They are now well settled, but they are concerned about how long
it will take them to get citizenship. And of course, quite soon,
similar questions will be raised with regard to Ukrainians.
A lot of nationality law is in primary legislation, which limits
some of the flexibility we have, but we will certainly be happy
to consider what we can do to support those who want to take that
step to become British citizens.
(Halifax) (Lab)
On 8 August last year, the Home Office sent a family from Halifax
back to Afghanistan on a voluntary return flight. That family
felt they had no choice but to apply for the voluntary return
scheme, having had their claim for asylum refused the year
before. Kabul fell to the Taliban just seven days later, on 15
August. The family have three children—the youngest is just five
years old. Can the Minister explain how the Home Office could
ever have allowed this to happen? Can he confirm whether this has
happened to others? Can he put on record that the five-year
re-entry ban, which would ordinarily apply to someone who leaves
the country via the voluntary return scheme, will not apply in
these appalling circumstances?
I am obviously interested to hear of the case that the shadow
Minister raises, and I would be interested to meet her to discuss
it further, particularly if the family is in Afghanistan, as it
may not be appropriate to share the details on the Floor of the
House. I would be happy to meet her and have a conversation about
the circumstances of that case.
Sexual Harassment
(Romsey and Southampton
North) (Con)
7. What assessment she has made of the potential merits of making
public sexual harassment a criminal offence.(905733)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
We fully recognise the concern that my right hon. Friend raises.
In fact, that same concern has been raised by many Members across
the House and many campaigners. We will do all we can to make
streets safer for women and girls, and if that includes a new
offence, so be it.
I know that my hon. Friend the Minister agrees with the Law
Commission that misogyny should not be a hate crime. Does she not
also think it appropriate that she should agree with the Law
Commission that public sexual harassment should be a specific
offence? I would like to echo the words of my right hon. Friend
the Home Secretary, who has just said that women should be able
to live their lives
“freely, safely and without harassment”.
Can we stop looking hard at this and actually bring forward some
legislation to make it happen?
As I have just said, if the work we are doing with the Law
Commission, legislators and others makes it clear that we need to
make a new offence, that is exactly what we will do. I would like
to draw my right hon. Friend’s attention to the work that the
police are doing to keep women safer. They are recording more
VAWG crimes, there is an increased willingness of victims to come
forward and there are improvements in police recording. We know
we have more to do, which is why this evening we are launching a
national communications campaign to tackle the perpetrators of
public sexual harassment.
(Cardiff West) (Lab)
But last week the Minister could not have been clearer in her
view that the test as to whether there should be legislation in
these areas was what the Law Commission said about it. She was
absolutely clear that, because the Law Commission did not
recommend that misogyny should be a hate crime, that should not
be the law. Why is she not equally clear on sexual
harassment?
Let me be as clear as I can for the whole House. If there is a
need for a new offence, we will bring it forward.
(North West Durham)
(Con)
I welcome the Government’s broad support for tackling violence
against women and girls, including in public, and for banning
virginity testing and hymenoplasty in the Health and Care Bill,
which is going through the other place. I also welcome their
backing for the private Member’s Bill introduced by my hon.
Friend the Member for Mid Derbyshire (Mrs Latham)—the Marriage
and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Bill—to ban child marriage in
England and Wales. Our Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill
will look to extend some of those issues, for example by
outlawing breastfeeding voyeurism and ensuring that violent
offenders spend more time in prison. Does the Minister agree
that, by voting against that Bill, the Opposition are failing to
send the right message on protecting the victims of crime?
I thank my hon. Friend for highlighting the sheer scope of the
work we are doing to tackle these atrocious crimes. Violence
against women and girls is appalling, and this Government are
focused and united on stamping it out. I would like to see the
Opposition voting with us this evening to support the Police,
Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. Given the very loud comments
Opposition Members have made from a sedentary position, I expect
to see them in the Lobby with us this evening.
Immigration Policy
(Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath)
(Alba)
8. What recent discussions she has had with the Scottish
Government on immigration policy. (905734)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
We have introduced a new global points-based immigration system
that works in the interest of the whole of our United Kingdom,
including Scotland. We continue to deliver a comprehensive
programme of engagement on the new immigration system, including
with each of the devolved Administrations.
President Zelensky’s formidable leadership and valour should
inspire and humble us all. Like many MPs, I have constituents
with family and close friends in Ukraine. Given the humanitarian
crisis, will the Minister please advise us on what discussions
are taking place with the Scottish Government to develop
comprehensive, rapid accommodation for Ukrainian refugees, such
as Ken Stewart and his family, across these islands now and in
the coming days?
I briefly spoke with on Friday, ahead of potentially
meeting more formally, about potential options for Afghan
nationals currently in bridging hotels and those leaving Ukraine
to be both housed and settled in Scotland. If there are
individual cases at this stage, please feel free to bring them to
my attention, and we will look into them.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister, Neil—sorry, .
(Aberavon) (Lab)
I have had that since I was 13 years old, Mr Speaker. You are not
the first, and I am sure you will not be the last.
The Opposition support the call of the Welsh and Scottish
Governments for the UK Government to offer sanctuary to
Ukrainians who are fleeing the horrors of war, but the UK
Government’s response has, once again, demonstrated the toxic
combination of incompetence and indifference that are the
hallmarks of this Home Secretary and her ministerial team.
Over the weekend, the Minister, who is responsible for safe and
legal migration, tweeted that the Ukrainians who are running for
their lives should apply to come to our country on seasonal
fruit-picking visas. That tweet was the modern-day equivalent of
“Let them eat cake.” Thankfully he has deleted it, but will he
now come to the Dispatch Box to apologise unconditionally for
that tweet? Will he also offer swift, well-managed and safe
sanctuary to these victims of Putin’s barbarity who require our
support?
I am interested in contrasting those comments with what the
Ukrainian ambassador said yesterday. My right hon. Friend the
Home Secretary will shortly announce more. As I have already
said, it was useful to have a constructive conversation with the
Scottish Government on Friday.
(Cumbernauld, Kilsyth
and Kirkintilloch East) (SNP)
The Minister will have heard loud and clear during his call with
on Friday that the Scottish
Government fully support replicating the European model and
lifting visa requirements for Ukrainian nationals now. The UK
Government are now alone among our European allies in asking
Ukrainians to jump through visa hoops to reach sanctuary here,
and they are even more alone in legislating to criminalise,
marginalise and impoverish those who seek asylum through their
anti-refugee Bill. Surely basic human decency requires an urgent
rethink on both counts.
My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary will shortly say a bit
more on what we are looking to do for Ukrainians. Yes, it was a
productive conversation with , but one thing that would
certainly help us to support more of those seeking asylum in this
country would be if 31 of the 32 local authority areas in
Scotland, including the hon. Gentleman’s own, were not refusing
to be dispersal areas.
Antisocial Behaviour
(Thornbury and Yate) (Con)
9. What steps her Department is taking to help tackle antisocial
behaviour. (905735)
(Redcar) (Con)
18. What steps her Department plans to take to tackle antisocial
behaviour in young people. (905747)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
The beating crime plan lays out the Government’s commitment to
working with local agencies to drive down antisocial behaviour.
We ensured that local agencies have flexible tools and powers to
tackle it through the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing
Act 2014, and in the levelling up White Paper we announced that
the safer streets fund will be expanded to include the prevention
of ASB as one of its primary aims.
There has been a spate of antisocial behaviour and a rise in
burglary in Thornbury and, particularly, Alveston over the past
few weeks. Avon and Somerset police has provided strong support
and recruited 670 new officers in the last year and a half alone,
which is very welcome, but what steps can my hon. Friend take to
make sure these new officers do not just concentrate their
activity in the core city areas but support rural south
Gloucestershire, too? Will she meet me to discuss what more we
can do to keep communities such as Thornbury and Alveston
safe?
I completely sympathise with my hon. Friend’s constituents, who
are suffering from antisocial behaviour and burglaries. I welcome
his acknowledgement that the Government have ensured that
Gloucestershire has additional police officers. Those officers
are deployed by the chief constable and the locally elected
police and crime commissioner, so it is absolutely down to them.
I am sure that my hon. Friend will be advocating most
vociferously to ensure that they are targeting those additional
officers where they are needed.
Despite the best efforts of our fantastic police officers, the
careless use of unlicensed off-road motorcycles is a huge aspect
of antisocial behaviour in Redcar and Cleveland. The use of these
bikes, largely by teenagers and young adults, has resulted in
significant damage to private property and to the living
environment for local people. Sadly, it often also includes the
transportation of illegal drugs. Will the Minister commit to
visiting Redcar and Cleveland with me to see the extent of the
problem, speak with some of the people affected and help us
devise a plan to tackle this criminality?
I would be delighted to visit my hon. Friend’s
constituency—perhaps I can visit the Gloucestershire constituency
of my hon. Friend the Member for Thornbury and Yate () on my way there. My hon. Friend
the Member for Redcar () is absolutely right to
highlight the detrimental impacts of this type of behaviour. Of
course, our legislation gives those responsible the ability to
deal with antisocial incidents. I understand that he faces a
particular issue in Eston hills, so perhaps he can take me there
and we will see what we can do together.
(Huddersfield)
(Lab/Co-op)
Is the Minister aware that some kinds of antisocial behaviour
sometimes become violent and that some of the young people swept
into that have autism backgrounds? Is she concerned that under
joint enterprise it is now believed that many young people are in
prison who should not be there? Is she worried about joint
enterprise and is she making any investigation to do something
about it?
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. On the broader issue
of those suffering from autism, we absolutely are aware that a
number of factors contribute to young people sadly being caught
up in crime, either as perpetrators or as victims. We are working
widely across government with our colleagues in the Department
for Education and the Department of Health and Social Care, and I
point specifically to the excellent work we are doing in the
violence reduction units up and down the country and through the
youth endowment fund, which targets and specifically funds
projects to help young people avoid a life of crime. I would be
happy to talk to him in more detail about the specific issue he
raises with me.
(Rutherglen and Hamilton
West) (Ind)
What assessment has the Minister made of the link between youth
antisocial behaviour and a lack of youth-focused community spaces
and initiatives? What discussions have taken place across
Government about ensuring that communities have the resources to
support young people before antisocial behaviour occurs or
escalates?
The hon. Lady will be aware that the issue of youth violence is a
key priority for the crime and justice taskforce, led by the Home
Secretary and the Prime Minister. My colleagues in the Department
for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport have recently allocated
£540 million to additional youth services up and down the
country, which is a fantastic initiative to enable young people
to be engaged in productive activities so that they are not
tempted by a life of criminality.
(Ipswich) (Con)
I am very happy that Ipswich is getting £25 million through a
town deal, but when I talk to town centre businesses and my
constituents I find that many of them are very concerned about
crime and antisocial behaviour. It is actually putting some
people off going into the town, and in Dial Lane a number of
businesses have had their windows smashed. Does my hon. Friend
agree that as we support our town centres in coming out of the
pandemic it is crucial that we tackle antisocial behaviour, and
that one way in which we can do that in Ipswich would be by
looking at the police funding formula for Suffolk, which I have
banged on about quite a lot, to make sure that we get a fair deal
and a bigger police presence in the town centre, so that
businesses and my constituents feel 110% secure to spend money in
the town centre?
I am pleased to say that because of my hon. Friend’s ardent
campaigning there are more police officers in his area. I wish to
highlight for him the safer streets fund, which is exactly the
kind of initiative that we are putting into town centres to
tackle these issues, through things such as better street
lighting, CCTV and additional security for residents. The latest
round of our safer streets fund is focused on targeting violence
against women and girls. That will specifically look at patrols,
safer streets and training and the night-time economy.
Antisocial Behaviour and Organised Crime
(Birmingham, Ladywood)
(Lab)
10. What assessment her Department has made of the relationship
between antisocial behaviour and organised crime. (905736)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
The beating crime plan laid out the Government’s commitments to
working with local agencies to drive down antisocial behaviour
and tackle the organised criminal business that often drives the
most visible crime felt in local neighbourhoods.
Crooks, fraudsters and those with links to organised crime are
exploiting loopholes in the law to access taxpayers’ cash in the
exempt supported housing sector. The Minister for Crime and
Policing is aware of the problem and he knows that the
proliferation of this type of housing units is causing an
avalanche of antisocial behaviour that is destroying
neighbourhoods. He recently promised, when he visited Birmingham,
that he would have urgent conversations with colleagues in the
Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and the
Department for Work and Pensions, but in the Opposition Day
debate that took place in this Chamber last week there was no
reference to any such conversations having taken place and no
Home Office interest in this matter. Can the Minister tell us
what steps are being taken by Home Office officials and Ministers
after that visit to Birmingham by the Policing Minister to make
sure that the Home Office plays an active, cross-Government role
in shutting down the loopholes that causing chaos in
communities?
The hon. Lady will appreciate that my right hon. Friend the
Minister for Crime and Policing is sitting next to me on the
Treasury Bench, and I am sure that he would be delighted to
follow up on those specific questions.
(South Basildon and East
Thurrock) (Con)
As my hon. Friend knows, low-level drug use is sadly commonplace
across many towns and cities in the UK. It is the scourge of my
community and often acts as an escalator into more serious crime,
but is yet rarely challenged by the authorities. Will she
therefore agree to reinforce the message that drug use is
illegal, that it should be treated as a crime and that it should
carry an appropriate penalty enforced by police and courts
alike?
My hon. Friend will no doubt be aware of the robust and sweeping
action that we have taken to tackle drug use, which is led by my
right hon. Friends the Home Secretary and the Minister for Crime
and Policing. The 10-year drugs plan sets out how we will
eradicate drug taking from our country. Let me also highlight the
work that we have done on county lines, which is a hideous
scourge that affects many young people. Funded by Government,
some of the work that has taken place has closed down county
lines programmes—more than 1,500 lines—made more than 7,400
arrests and seized £4.3 million in cash.
Police Accessibility
(Ellesmere Port and Neston)
(Lab)
11. What assessment she has made of the accessibility of police
(a) stations and (b) services. (905737)
The Minister for Crime and Policing ()
It is important that the services that the police provide,
whether digitally or face to face, are all accessible, so that
everyone can come forward to report crime and interact with
police officers in any way that suits their requirements. We are
committed to giving the police the resources they need to fight
crime and keep the public safe. That is why policing will receive
up to £16,900 million in the coming financial year.
Does the Minister agree that the police and crime commissioner
for Cheshire needs to reconsider his priorities when he is
talking about closing down Ellesmere Port police station to the
public and getting rid of 40 police community support officers
while, at the same time, giving his deputy a 33% pay rise despite
their having been in the post for five months?
As I understand it, there is a consultation ongoing about how the
Cheshire police should interact with the public they serve. I
would hate to jump to any conclusion about what may or may not be
decided, but, Mr Speaker, you will be aware that all police and
crime commissioners should be reviewing their property strategy
in the light of the massive expansion in police officer numbers
that they are seeing at the moment, to the extent that, in the
next 12 months or so, we expect to see the highest number of
police officers that the country has ever seen.
Catalytic Converter Theft
(Bromley and Chislehurst)
(Con)
12. What steps her Department is taking to tackle catalytic
converter theft. (905739)
The Minister for Crime and Policing ()
We are working with police and manufacturers through the national
vehicle crime working group to tackle the theft of catalytic
converters.
In many areas of the country, crime is going down. It is going
down in many areas in Bromley and Chislehurst, but one area where
it is not is the explosion in catalytic converter thefts in my
constituency. Ours has been identified by the National Police
Chiefs’ Council lead as one of the highest areas for this crime.
These are not opportunistic thefts. Does my right hon. Friend
agree that these are thefts by organised crime gangs seeking
valuable metals that are sold for considerable amounts of
money—platinum and palladium—carried out by men armed with
baseball bats, threatening violence? Will he ensure that much
greater priority is given to this crime and that we clamp down on
the handlers of these stolen goods by greater enforcement of the
Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013?
My hon. Friend, with his usual acuity, has put his finger on the
button of this issue. It is cause for significant concern in
parts of the country, and he is right that it is a product of
prices in the metal market. He will be pleased to hear that just
this month the British Transport Police co-ordinated a national
week of intensification on acquisitive crime, looking
particularly at catalytic converters, and that the work we have
done on scrap metal dealers will go some way to dealing with the
problem. However, we need to work much more closely with
manufacturers to ensure that they do as much as they can to
design out the theft of converters. Let us hope that in the years
to come, as we all convert to electric vehicles, it will become a
problem of the past.
Hate Crime: Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Communities
(City of Durham) (Lab)
13. What steps she is taking to tackle hate crime against the
Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities. (905740)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
The Government take all forms of hate crime seriously and we will
shortly publish a new strategy setting out how we intend to
tackle those abhorrent crimes. I assure the hon. Lady that we
have sought views from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities.
Following Ministers’ welcome criticism of Jimmy Carr’s abhorrent
joke celebrating the genocide of Roma and Sinti people, the
Traveller Movement said that if the Government were serious about
reducing discrimination against GRT communities, they would scrap
the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. Does the Minister
accept that it is hypocritical for Ministers to condemn racism
from others while pushing through a Bill that the Government’s
own impact assessment confirms will discriminate against Gypsy,
Roma and Traveller people?
I am afraid the hon. Lady is completely wrong about the Bill. It
is a vital Bill to keep the public safe and protect them from sex
offenders, violent rapists and other criminals. The comments she
refers to were horrible, and it is clearly unacceptable to mock
victims of genocide. We are clear that all forms of hate speech
are unacceptable.
Violence Against Women and Girls
(Battersea) (Lab)
15. What steps her Department is taking to tackle violence
against women and girls. (905743)
(Liverpool, Wavertree)
(Lab)
19. What steps her Department is taking to tackle violence
against women and girls. (905748)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
Tackling violence against women and girls is a top priority for
this Government. Our actions include publishing a
cross-Government strategy on tackling VAWG, to be followed
shortly by a complementary domestic abuse plan; bringing in
world-class legislation to tackle stalking, forced marriage and
female genital mutilation, as well as the landmark Domestic Abuse
Act 2021; further increasing our funding for support services to
£185 million a year by 2024-25; and making public spaces
safer.
In December last year the Government rejected the recommendation
to create a firewall to enable migrant victims to safely report
domestic abuse to the police without fear of being reported to
the immigration authorities. Her Majesty’s inspectorate of
constabulary and fire and rescue services said that that would be
in the public interest. Can the Minister say how exactly the
Government plan to protect victims too frightened to come
forward, and to protect the public from the rapists and abusers
left free to offend with impunity?
Our domestic abuse plan and all the work we have done sets out
clearly how we are going to protect the most vulnerable victims
of domestic abuse, including those who may find themselves in the
immigration system. We have support schemes for those women, and
we take this seriously; we work extremely sensitively with our
policing partners, who have specialist trained officers to
recognise such cases and get support to the victims.
Remarkably, despite all the talk on violence against women and
girls, the Home Secretary and the Minister still fail to grasp
that misogyny is the driving force behind it. The offending
histories of many perpetrators reveal how they escalate from
lower-level criminal behaviour—offences that many do not report
because they do not think they will be taken seriously, such as
exposure, street harassment and catcalling. Racism, homophobia
and ableism are addressed in law, but no such protections are
afforded to women and girls. Why do the Home Secretary and the
Minister continue to turn a blind eye to the culture that exists
and is the root cause of violence against women and girls?
With the greatest respect, I think the hon. Lady completely
mischaracterises the Government’s comprehensive, sweeping,
serious and well-funded response to violence against women and
girls, which she has heard me and the Home Secretary refer to
earlier in this session. On the specific issue she raises, I
highlight the fact that the police are recording more crimes of
violence against women and girls, and there is an increased
willingness of victims to come forward because of the work we and
the criminal justice system have done. There is always more to
do, but crime reporting in the VAWG sector is up by 12% to
September 2021 on the same period of the prior year.
(Croydon Central) (Lab)
We have heard lots of words on strategies, taskforces,
roundtables and action plans, yet many victims will never see
justice, and more and more criminals are getting away with it.
The House of Lords has voted to introduce a new crime of sex for
rent, which Labour Members support and will be voting for
tonight. Will the Minister back us?
My colleague the Policing Minister will be speaking to that
amendment later, and we will be consulting on this specific
issue. However, I want to highlight that there are already
offences on the statute book to tackle this particular abhorrent
form of behaviour.
English Language Tests
(East Ham) (Lab)
14. If she will take steps to resolve the immigration status of
overseas students who have been falsely accused of cheating in
English language tests. (905742)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
As I said recently in the House in response to an urgent
question, the Home Office is awaiting the findings of the upper
tribunal presidential panel, who are currently considering the
case known as RK/DK, which we hope will bring further clarity to
the ETS TOEIC issue. Once we have received and digested the
judgment we will announce our next steps.
After 2014, over 30,000 overseas students lost their visas,
accused of cheating in English language tests. It is now clear
that the great majority of those students were entirely innocent.
It is now over 12 months since the Home Secretary rightly told
the Home Affairs Committee:
“We need to find a resolution”.
Why wait for the outcome of the court case? There is no need to
delay. Why not now bring forward the resolution the Home
Secretary has rightly promised?
Given that the judgment is believed to be fairly imminent, it
makes eminent sense to wait for it and then announce our next
steps fully taking into account what it says and what it
concludes. As the right hon. Gentleman will be aware, given the
passage of time we have already amended our guidance to make it
clear that where a person’s right to a private and family life in
the UK is relevant, the interception of a previous TOEIC test is
not an invariable ground for refusal if they make an immigration
application.
Mr Speaker
We now come to topicals. I have granted some extra time to the
Home Secretary as she wants to make an important
announcement.
Topical Questions
(Cheadle) (Con)
T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental
responsibilities.(905752)
The Secretary of State for the Home Department ()
Thank you, Mr Speaker.
Putin’s war on Ukraine is monstrous and unjustified. I am in
regular contact with the Ukrainian Minister of the Interior and
the ambassador to London. The United Kingdom stands firmly with
the people of Ukraine, and, as this House would expect, Britain
is stepping up to play its part in responding to the terrible
situation on the ground in Ukraine.
The Government have already announced the first phase of a
bespoke humanitarian route for the people of Ukraine. The new
route responds directly to the needs and asks of the Ukrainian
Government. Every conflict and threat situation is unique and
requires a tailored response. Our new route will continue to keep
pace with the developing situation on the ground and has so far
already supported hundreds of British nationals and their
families resident in Ukraine to leave. UK Visas and Immigration
staff continue to work around the clock to assist them. The route
has also enabled dependents of British national residents in
Ukraine who need a UK visa to apply through the temporary
location in Lviv or through the visa application centres in
Poland, Moldova, Romania and Hungary. Over recent weeks teams
have been surged to these areas and applications have been
completed within hours.
We are in direct contact with individuals and we have also
lowered various requirements and salary thresholds so that people
can be supported. Where family members of British nationals do
not meet the usual eligibility criteria but pass security checks,
UK Visas and Immigration will give them permission to enter the
UK outside the rules for 12 months and is prioritising all
applications to give British nationals and any person settled in
the UK the ability to bring over their immediate Ukrainian family
members. I can confirm that through this extension alone an
additional 100,000 Ukrainians will be able to seek sanctuary in
the UK, with access to work and public services. We are enabling
Ukrainian nationals already in the UK to switch free of charge
into a points-based immigration route or to the family visa
route. We are extending visas for Ukraine temporary workers in
some sectors, and they can now stay until at least December 2022,
primarily because no one can return to Ukraine. Anyone in Ukraine
intending to apply under the family migration route should call
the dedicated 24-hour Home Office helpline for assistance before
making an application.
Britain continues to lead and is doing its fair share in every
aspect of this Ukraine conflict. I urge colleagues not to attempt
casework themselves, but to directly refer people to the helpline
number. Duplication of effort would waste precious time and cause
confusion. This is the best and most efficient way to help
people.
Over the weekend, I have seen Members of this House calling for
full visa waivers for all Ukrainians. Security and biometric
checks are a fundamental part of our visa approval process
worldwide, and they will continue, as they did for the evacuation
of people from Afghanistan. That is vital to keep British
citizens safe and to ensure that we are helping those in genuine
need, particularly as Russian troops are now infiltrating Ukraine
and merging into Ukrainian forces. Intelligence reports also
state the presence of extremist groups and organisations who
threaten the region, but also our domestic homeland. We know all
too well what Putin’s Russia is willing to do, even on our soil,
as we saw through the Salisbury attack and the nerve agents used
on the streets of the UK. The approach we are taking is based on
the strongest security advice. The Prime Minister has set out
myriad other ways we are supporting Ukraine.
There will be other statements in the House today, but there are
two other points I would like to add. The Nationality and Borders
Bill is at Report stage in the other place. It contains
provisions to allow visa penalties to be applied to specific
countries that do not co-operate with the return of their
nationals. I am now seeking to extend those provisions so that a
country can be specified if it has taken significant steps that
threaten international peace and security, have led or are likely
to lead to armed conflicts or are in breach of international
humanitarian law. The extension would draw on the precedents from
the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018. Those powers
will be available as soon as the Bill receives Royal Assent. The
sooner that happens, the sooner this House and all Members can
collectively act.
We are ever mindful of the cyber-attacks and disinformation
emanating from Russia.
(Cardiff West) (Lab)
If you want to do a statement, do a statement.
I am sure the House would like to listen to the actual measures
we are bringing in. The cyber-attacks and disinformation will be
met with robust responses, and we have stepped up all
international co-operation on that.
Finally, what is happening in Ukraine is utterly heartbreaking
and profoundly wrong, but together with our international
partners, we stand with the heroic Ukrainian people. Further work
is taking place with diplomatic channels, and the Ukrainian
Government have today requested that the Russian Government be
suspended from their membership of Interpol, and we will be
leading all international efforts to that effect.
Mr Speaker
We did try to arrange with the Home Secretary’s office that the
statement should be up to 500 words. I think we will find that
that was beyond 800 words; it took six minutes. I think the House
would have benefited from an actual statement. If we cannot have
one tomorrow morning, I suggest someone might like to put in for
an urgent question, because I believe the House would benefit
from that, as there was so much in what the Home Secretary said.
I will be extending topicals.
(Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock)
(SNP)
T2. Will the Home Secretary listen to the 50 organisations,
including Save the Children and Amnesty International, that wrote
a joint letter in The Times last week calling for the Ukraine
crisis to lead to a rethink on the Nationality and Borders Bill,
which discriminates against refugees depending on how they reach
our shores?(905753)
First, we will not be reconsidering the Nationality and Borders
Bill. The hon. Gentleman has already heard about the amendments
we will be tabling to deal with countries such as Russia and the
actions of President Putin.
(Blackpool South) (Con)
T3. Our failure to stop tens of thousands of illegal immigrants
crossing the English channel in the last few years has resulted
in them being accommodated in hotels, often in completely
inappropriate locations, including a site in Blackpool, at a cost
of millions of pounds per week to the UK taxpayer. What steps is
the Minister taking to ensure that the Home Office can process
the claims of those crossing the channel as soon as possible and
reduce the huge cost to the taxpayer?(905754)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
I recognise my hon. Friend’s concerns about the use of the
property in Blackpool, which he has strongly expressed to me on
previous occasions. We are looking to double the number of asylum
decision makers and to take forward a programme of simplification
and modernisation of processing to increase the number of
decisions we make, cut down the backlog and reintroduce a service
standard for the time taken for an initial decision.
(Normanton, Pontefract and
Castleford) (Lab)
The Home Secretary said that she was announcing a bespoke
humanitarian route, but it is extremely unclear from what she
said what the details actually are or who it will apply to. The
Ukrainian people are showing great bravery, but we know that
people, particularly mothers and young children and elderly
parents, have left to find sanctuary. The UK has always done its
bit to help those fleeing war in Europe and it will come as a
relief to many people who have been calling for action if the
Government are prepared to do more.
I must ask the Home Secretary, however, why there is so much
confusion about it. The Russian invasion began five days ago and
other countries responded with clear sanctuary arrangements
immediately. Troops have been gathering since mid-January and
British intelligence has been warning of an invasion for weeks.
We have had a weekend of complete confusion. We still do not know
what the arrangements are. Why was nothing worked out already?
How on earth is the Home Secretary so poorly prepared for
something that she has been warned about for so many weeks?
Let me refute every single point that the right hon. Lady has
made. All intelligence, rightly, has pointed to the invasion for
a considerable time, and the Government have been working for
that, as we know, in terms of the wider Government response.
[Interruption.] If I can start to respond to some of those
questions, all hon. Members would benefit from paying attention
and listening.
When it comes to providing visas and support for Ukrainian
nationals in the United Kingdom, our schemes have been put in
place for weeks—there is no confusion whatsoever. They have been
in place in countries switching routes. They have been well
publicised and well documented. We have been working through our
visa application centres. [Interruption.] Again, perhaps the hon.
Member for Birmingham, Yardley () would like to listen, rather
than being responsible for some of the misinformation that has
been characterised and put out over the weekend. Those routes
have been open and available.
A helpline has been available for weeks. We have had people
working in the region and in country in Ukraine for weeks and
weeks. We obviously closed down our operations in Kyiv, because
we removed staff from there—
Mr Speaker
Order. We have to make some progress. We are on topicals; they
are meant to be short. You had six minutes before. I call , briefly.
The Home Secretary said that the routes have been in place, but
she has been trying to get people to use existing visas, which do
not work in a time of crisis. That is why her Immigration
Minister was suggesting that people come and pick fruit.
At a time when many people want to stay close to the Ukraine, we
know that there are family members or extended family
members—people who have connections here in the UK—who want to
come and join family and friends. They will still not know what
the situation is as a result of the Home Secretary’s words today.
Let me ask her something very specific about the elderly parents
of people who are living here in the UK, who are not covered by
her announcement yesterday. Will the elderly parent who tried to
join her daughter in the UK, who was turned down and made to go
away by UK Border Force at the Gare du Nord, be able to return to
the Gare du Nord today and come safely to the UK?
Yes.
(Scunthorpe) (Con)
T4. Scunthorpe and Ukraine have deep ties rooted in our
steelworks and we are horrified by what is happening to our
Ukrainian friends. Can my right hon. Friend confirm that the
support that she has just described will stay in place for
however long it is needed?(905755)
My hon. Friend makes a very sensible point, because, of course,
there is a conflict taking place. The work of the Government is
absolutely right now to support the people of Ukraine, and in
particular to support those who need to come over to our
country.
(Cumbernauld, Kilsyth
and Kirkintilloch East) (SNP)
After this weekend I have to say that, not for the first time, I
am struggling to understand what the Home Office is announcing
and why it is announcing whatever it is. May I ask, for example,
about my constituent who is fleeing Ukraine? Is he able to be
accompanied by his mother-in-law, sister-in-law and niece? Again,
why not do the simple thing and the just thing, and lift visa
restrictions altogether?
I refer the hon. Gentleman to the comments I have made
already.
Greg Smith (Buckingham) (Con)
T5. The Government should be rightly proud of the action taken
to support our police officers, not least through the adoption of
Harper’s law, which is due before this House later today. What
more can my right hon. Friend do to ensure that police officers
get all the mental health support they need, as advocated by the
Green Ribbon Policing campaign?(905756)
My hon. Friend is absolutely right in the case he makes about
mental health, and I know that he is doing some great work on
this as well. We are doing a huge amount in Government, working
with the Department of Health and Social Care in particular,
focusing on mental health support, such as the TRiM—trauma risk
management—programme and things of that nature. I know he has a
particular interest in this, and it is something I would like to
discuss with him further.
(North Ayrshire and Arran)
(SNP)
T7. I listened to the Home Secretary’s earlier statement with
interest, but clarity is needed. I have constituents who have
family members in Ukraine, some of them frail and elderly. Can
she assure the House that those Ukrainians who wish to join their
families in the UK can do so via a third country without being
mired in delays and bureaucracy, and can she further guarantee
that those refugees will not be ordered to leave the UK after the
nominal 12 months have expired?(905758)
There are no delays and bureaucracy, as the hon. Member has
already heard me say, and on her last point, yes.
(Clwyd South) (Con)
T6. North Wales police in my constituency of Clwyd South does an
exceptional job in keeping the public safe and tackling crime.
Could my right hon. Friend comment on plans to recruit and retain
the best and brightest to join our police force, and would he
join me in praising our local policing initiatives?(905757)
The Minister for Crime and Policing ()
I am more than happy to lavish praise on North Wales police,
which does a fantastic job along the coast there, as do all our
police officers up and down the country. I am pleased to say that
we are making enormous progress on our recruitment programme. As
I hope my hon. Friend knows, we are well over 11,000 now, and I
expect to hit the 20,000 target shortly.
(Coventry South) (Lab)
Jo, a constituent, came to Britain in 2001 and served for five
years in the Army, including in Iraq and Afghanistan, where he
developed post-traumatic stress disorder. He served time for
drink-driving offences, but he sought help for PTSD, stopped
drinking and rebuilt his life. He now has two children in
Coventry and no connections in Zimbabwe, his birthplace, where he
was tortured the last time he was there. However, on Wednesday Jo
is set to be deported to Zimbabwe, and I have had no reply from
the Minister to my urgent correspondence on this case. So will
the Home Secretary step in and stop Jo being deported from the
country he has served and where his family lives to a place where
he will be at risk of torture?
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for her question. It is fair to
say that casework inquiries on these matters are treated
urgently, and it is one that will no doubt cross my desk within
the coming hours. Of course, the flight in question later this
week relates to individuals who have committed very serious
criminality, but I will of course ensure that the individual case
is looked at.
(Bridgend) (Con)
T8. In the light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, does my right
hon. Friend agree with me that now is the ideal time to review
and reform the 32-year-old Computer Misuse Act 1990, as
recommended by the Intelligence and Security Committee’s Russia
report, and will he meet me and colleagues to discuss how
reforming that legislation could not only help to tackle online
crime, but unlock our national cyber-defence?(905759)
The Minister for Security and Borders ()
My hon. Friend is absolutely right about the importance of the
review of the Computer Misuse Act. Since my right hon. Friend the
Home Secretary launched that review last year, a number of very
good and important suggestions have come forward, which we are
currently reviewing. Meanwhile, of course, we continue always to
update our approach, including to the National Cyber Security
Centre and, more immediately, to the online safety Bill.
(Kingston upon Hull North)
(Lab)
In the evidence the Home Secretary gave to the Home Affairs
Committee on 2 February, she said that a major obstacle for
accepting more people under Operation Warm Welcome for Afghans
fleeing the Taliban was the lack of suitable accommodation
because of Home Office contracts. The Select Committee has been
warning about this for some time. I think that the Home Secretary
has announced a bespoke humanitarian policy for those Ukrainians
fleeing—[Hon. Members: “No, she hasn’t.”] Oh, perhaps she has
not; I am sorry there is not a statement to clarify that. What I
want to know is: what is she going to do about the lack of
accommodation that the Home Office provides for asylum seekers
and refugees in this country?
We are certainly concerned about the lack of suitable
accommodation across the United Kingdom in terms of dispersal
areas, which is why we are keen to sign up new areas to become
dispersal areas. I am pushing my own council and, as I have
already said, there are 31 out of 32 areas in Scotland that could
do with signing up as well.
(West Dorset) (Con)
T9. Dorset police is at the bottom of the funding league table
for police forces, coming 40th out of 41 forces, and we continue
to battle issues of rural crime, including county lines drug
gangs. Will my right hon. Friend commit to ensuring that Dorset
gets its fair share, so that we can get more police officers—I
particularly want to see the rural crime police team doubled, and
I know those aspirations are shared by our police and crime
commissioner?(905760)
I have committed before, and I am happy to do so again, that
before the end of the Parliament we will produce a new funding
formula to ensure that my hon. Friend’s constituency gets exactly
what he deserves, as indeed he should.
(Hackney North and Stoke
Newington) (Lab)
Does the Home Secretary accept that many Members of this House
are dismayed that she did not make a statement in the normal way,
so that she could have been questioned in the normal way? Does
she further accept that that is not just disrespectful to the
House of Commons, but it shows a lack of real concern for those
desperate people escaping Ukraine?
I completely reject the right hon. Lady’s latter point, and
naturally I will always be happy to return to the House and take
questions.
(Tatton) (Con)
Constituents in Tatton are increasingly concerned about the
growing number and range of online fraud and scams, and the
ability of Action Fraud to deal with them. Many of those crimes
originate outside the UK, with some from hostile states such as
Russia. What is the Minister doing to counter that?
My right hon. Friend is right, and we share her constituents’
concern. We are looking constantly to upgrade and improve Action
Fraud, and I encourage her constituents to carry on reporting
those instances of fraud. Together with the rest of our
constituents, their forwarding of dodgy emails to
report@phishing.gov.uk has so far led to 73,000 scams being
removed.
(Rhondda) (Lab)
Will the Home Secretary publish her review into the tier 1
gold-plated visas? Will she suspend all tier 1 visas for people
who have connections with the Putin regime, and will she look
into the veracity of applications for British citizenship by
Russian oligarchs who are connected with Putin?
I think the hon. Gentleman knows my view and position on that,
and of course the answer is yes.
(Milton Keynes North)
(Con)
Another young life has been tragically lost to a knife in Milton
Keynes. Does the Minister agree that as well as record numbers of
police on the streets, the courts and the Crown Prosecution
Service need to work with the police to ensure that there are
real deterrents to carrying a knife on our streets?
My hon. Friend is right, and I am very sorry to hear of the crime
that took place in his constituency. As he will know, the fight
against knife crime is at the forefront of the Government’s
priorities, and as he said, alongside deterrent sentencing and
assertive and extensive policing, we need to work on long-term
solutions to turn young people’s lives away from crime. I am
pleased that I was able to visit the Thames Valley violence
reduction unit last year to look at the extensive work it is
doing to put in place exactly those kind of programmes.
