Home Department The Secretary of State was asked— Refugee and
Asylum Seeker Accommodation Kate Osamor (Edmonton) (Lab/Co-op) 1.
What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to ensure an
adequate standard of accommodation for refugees and asylum
seekers.(906413) The Secretary of State for the Home Department
(Suella Braverman) The asylum accommodation support contracts
ensure the provision of safe, habitable, fit-for-purpose and
correctly equipped...Request free trial
Home Department
The Secretary of State was asked—
Refugee and Asylum Seeker Accommodation
(Edmonton) (Lab/Co-op)
1. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to ensure an
adequate standard of accommodation for refugees and asylum
seekers.(906413)
The Secretary of State for the Home Department ()
The asylum accommodation support contracts ensure the provision
of safe, habitable, fit-for-purpose and correctly equipped
accommodation for destitute asylum seekers. The contracts also
require compliance with the law, local authority licensing and
best practice guidance. We have been working with the Department
for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to minimise the
potential impact on homelessness, and have agreed an asylum
placement funding for local authorities.
We hear the Government talking about £6 million per day being
wasted on hotels, but we do not hear about the billions being
forked out on private companies such as Serco and Clearsprings
Ready Homes, both of which have seen scores of complaints,
including about unsanitary conditions, a lack of safeguarding,
and sexual abuse. Does the Home Secretary think that it is
appropriate to entrust those companies with taxpayers’ money to
run asylum accommodation in hotels and former Ministry of Defence
sites?
The safety and wellbeing of asylum seekers in our care is of
paramount importance at the Home Office. We expect high standards
from all our providers, and we have robust governance frameworks
in place to manage the service delivery of asylum accommodation.
What we definitely do not do, and do not propose to do, is
willingly accept thousands more illegal migrants into the UK from
the EU, housed presumably in more hotels across the country, as
Labour is proposing. I campaigned for Brexit to take back control
of our borders, not for Labour to surrender our sovereignty to
the EU.
(Gainsborough) (Con)
One of the justifications for using service accommodation such as
RAF Scampton was that it was supposed to be cheaper, but we now
know the figures: it is more expensive over two years, and over
three years the savings are absolutely derisory. The figures are,
frankly, being fiddled by overcapitalising the value of the base,
and are not based on surveys. The Home Secretary’s officials are
now ripping out services. The council has issued a stop order on
it. I give notice that I will report the Home Office to the
Comptroller and Auditor General for misapplying and wasting
public money, because using the base will cost more than hotels.
The base is Crown land, so the local authority cannot enter it.
Does she accept that she would be acting illegally and is liable
to be sued if her officials disobey the stop order?
I have had several discussions with my right hon. Friend about
the proposed asylum accommodation at Scampton. I thank him for
his very energetic campaigning on behalf of his constituents. I
very much appreciate the challenges that this nationwide mission
poses for us all. I do not agree with his assessment; we have
assessed the proposal at Scampton to be value for money.
Ultimately, it is not right that we continue to house tens of
thousands of migrants in hotels, in towns and cities across the
country, costing the taxpayer £6 million a day. That is why our
work to roll out large sites is moving swiftly, and we propose to
move asylum seekers on to them as soon as possible.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Aberavon) (Lab)
It has been more than a month since all 39 asylum seekers were
hauled off the 500-capacity Bibby Stockholm because of the
detection of legionella, but the Home Secretary is yet to give a
date for when the barge will actually be ready for use. We still
do not know why she chose not to wait for the legionella results
before ploughing ahead, and why her Minister was so slow to act
once the results came in. We are still yet to hear a denial from
the Home Secretary that it is one of the most lethal strains of
the bacteria, as reported in the media. Today, will she set out
her responses to those questions and confirm the exact cost of
the barge? Half a million pounds per month to house zero asylum
seekers on this floating symbol of failure feels utterly
extortionate. Why is it that the only boat this Government have
managed to stop is their own?
I am somewhat surprised by the hon. Gentleman’s change of tune:
he is on the record in the media as supporting our use of the
barge, so a change of heart is welcome. We have assessed the
barge—it has been under constant scrutiny—and we will be
re-embarking people on to that barge as soon as is practical and
possible. What is clear is that the hon. Gentleman simply has no
answers for how to solve the broader problem. The truth is that
Labour’s policy has not survived contact with reality: it has
been denounced by the EU, its shadow Ministers are making it up
as they go along, and the leader has had to backtrack—and it has
not even been a week. Only the Conservative party has a plan that
is based on reality, deterrence and delivery, and it will stop
the boats.
Mr Speaker
I call the SNP spokesperson.
(Glasgow Central)
(SNP)
OpenDemocracy recently revealed the extent of self-harm and
suicide in immigration removal centres—in particular,
Harmondsworth and Colnbrook, where 24 self-harm incidents
occurred in March, which is more than over the three previous
months combined. Emma Ginn, director of Medical Justice, has
said:
“We are not confident that the Home Office considers the value of
the lives of those in its care in detention as fully human.”
What is the Home Secretary doing to ensure that those in Home
Office immigration removal centres do not face such desperate
circumstances that they seek to take their own lives?
As I said, the safety of all of those in our care is a priority
for the Home Office, and the standard of habitation—whether that
is in our asylum accommodation estate more broadly, or
specifically in our immigration removal centres—is one that
always, as far as the law requires, meets high standards. Those
standards are rigorously scrutinised and monitored, and those who
have concerns have avenues to make complaints via the migrant
helpline.
Police Resources
(Sedgefield) (Con)
2. What steps she is taking to increase police
resources.(906414)
(Uxbridge and South
Ruislip) (Con)
4. What steps she is taking to increase police
resources.(906416)
The Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire ()
I am sure that the whole House will join me in sending our very
sincere condolences to the family of Sergeant Graham Saville, who
a week or two ago so tragically lost his life in the line of
duty, saving another in the constituency of my right hon. Friend
the Member for Newark (). Our thoughts and prayers
are with his family. He made the ultimate sacrifice, and we are
grateful to him.
To answer my hon. Friends’ questions, total police funding this
year stands at £17.2 billion, a record level. Frontline policing
received an extra £550 million this year compared with last year,
and I am pleased to report once again that we have a record
number of police officers across England and Wales: 149,566,
which is 3,500 more than we ever had under the last Labour
Government.
As always, the devil is in the detail. In Durham, we see funding
pressure on both police and fire services, which is not helped by
our local tax base being so low: we have A to C in most regions.
The fire service has a coherent—albeit very challenged—programme,
but the Labour police and crime commissioner knew 10 years ago
that Newton Aycliffe police station was going to be moved away
from the fire station, and she is still scrambling around. Does
the Minister agree that good plans help cost-effective delivery,
and will he meet me to discuss funding and programme delivery for
the police and fire services in Durham that cover my Sedgefield
constituency? Does he also agree that electing Robert Potts, the
Conservative candidate for the next PCC elections in May, would
be a far better outcome for the police in Durham?
I will certainly meet with my hon. Friend, and yes, I do agree. I
am very disappointed to hear what he has to say about his Labour
PCC’s performance, which contrasts with what Conservative PCCs
have done. Only today, PCC in Hampshire announced that
she would be opening 10 new police counters, an example of what
happens when we have sound Conservative policies in
operation.
My right hon. Friend will recall his recent visit to Uxbridge.
Will he join me in calling for the Mayor of London to guarantee
the future of Uxbridge police station as fully operational,
including a full custody suite and a 24/7 front counter for my
constituents?
I welcome my hon. Friend to his very well-deserved place. Of
course, the Mayor of London, , had planned to close down
Uxbridge police station, along with many others, until my hon.
Friend forced him into a humiliating U-turn before he was even
elected—that is more than most of us achieved prior to coming to
Parliament. I join him in calling on the Mayor of London to keep
Uxbridge police station open and to add that custody suite, but
also to confirm the future of all those other police stations
around London that he had threatened to close just a few years
ago.
(Halifax) (Lab)
In my constituency, we have experienced a real escalation in
antisocial behaviour and quite violent disorder in recent years,
particularly around bonfire night. Last year, police had to
deploy 100 officers to just one area of my constituency where
local communities were being terrorised. What consideration has
the Minister made of additional powers or resources for areas up
and down the country that are anticipating further unacceptable
disorder ahead of this year’s bonfire night?
The hon. Lady is quite right to raise this issue. Antisocial
behaviour concerns everyone. There are a number of powers
available to local police, such as community protection notices,
and to local authorities—I am thinking in particular of public
space protection orders—so I strongly urge her to work with her
local authority and, if she is concerned about a particular area,
to put in place a public space protection order ahead of bonfire
night. Our antisocial behaviour plan envisages strengthening
various antisocial behaviour powers. As of next April, we will
also be funding every single police force in the country to have
antisocial behaviour hotspot patrols. I am not sure whether her
force is one of the 10 pilot areas, but every force will have
that funding from next April, and the sort of situation that she
describes sounds like the ideal use for those ASB hotspot
patrols.
(Hampstead and Kilburn)
(Lab)
The same shops and newsagents on Kilburn High Road in my
constituency are constantly targeted by criminals, who shoplift
but also intimidate staff. When I raised the issue with the
police, they said they receive 1,000 calls a day from central
north London alone, limiting their ability to deal with it. What
plans does the Minister have to increase the resources to deal
with this sort of crime, especially retail theft?
I strongly sympathise with those affected by shoplifting on
Kilburn High Road. I was the prospective parliamentary candidate
in that constituency in 2010, and I remember walking down Kilburn
High Road with when a shoplifter ran out of
Poundland and straight into our arms. It is a serious issue. The
Metropolitan police has a record number of police officers—about
35,000—and I have recently been in discussions with Amanda
Blakeman, the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead, to increase
patrolling in shoplifting hotspot areas and to have a more
comprehensive response from the police in terms of investigation,
such as always following up CCTV footage where it is available.
This is an issue not just on Kilburn High Road but around the
country. As I say, we will shortly announce further action, in
partnership with police.
Drugs Policy: Scotland
(Glasgow North) (SNP)
3. Whether she has had discussions with Cabinet colleagues and
the Scottish Government on further devolution of drugs policy to
Scotland.(906415)
The Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire ()
I have not had discussions on the devolution of drugs policy,
which is of course reserved to this Parliament, but I do have
regular discussions about co-operating with colleagues in the
Scottish Government. I had a discussion with the new Minister
just a few weeks ago, and I think we are going to be meeting in
Cardiff in just a few weeks’ time with Ministers from the three
devolved Administrations to discuss how we can work
constructively and collaboratively together.
The Minister will know that the Lord Advocate in Scotland has
issued a prosecution statement saying that she will not prosecute
anyone in possession of controlled substances in any pilot safe
consumption or overdose prevention facility that might be
established in Scotland. Can he confirm what the Secretary of
State for Scotland indicated in the House last week—that the UK
Government will not seek to use any administrative or legislative
means to frustrate or block the establishment of such a pilot
facility?
First, it is important to make it clear that the UK Government’s
position on drug consumption rooms in England and Wales is that
we do not support them. We are concerned that they condone or
even encourage illegal drug use. I want to put that on the record
straightaway. Of course, we respect the independence of the Lord
Advocate as Scotland’s prosecutorial authority. Providing that
that power is exercised lawfully, of course we are not going to
stand in the way of it, as my right hon. Friend the Scottish
Secretary set out last week. I understand that plans may involve
a strong integration with treatment and some consideration of
each case on its individual merits, but we do not plan to
interfere with the lawfully exercised prosecutorial independence
of the Lord Advocate.
Mr Speaker
I call the SNP spokesperson.
(Glasgow Central)
(SNP)
I am glad to hear what the drugs Minister says. The Home Affairs
Committee’s report on drugs highlighted good practice in
Scotland, in particular with the naloxone roll-out and the
medication assisted treatment standards for same-day treatment.
Academic evaluation has also found our enhanced drug treatment
service, Scotland’s only heroin-assisted treatment service, to
have been successfully implemented, in particular with a group
with very complex backgrounds. Will the Minister visit Glasgow to
hear more about what Scotland is doing to reduce harm and save
lives?
As I said to the hon. Lady at the Bar of the House last week, I
am due to be in Edinburgh in early December, so I would be
delighted to accept her invitation to visit the facility in
Glasgow.
Knife Crime
Mr (Old Bexley and Sidcup)
(Con)
5. What steps her Department is taking to reduce knife
crime.(906417)
(West Bromwich East)
(Con)
13. What steps her Department is taking to reduce knife
crime.(906427)
The Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire ()
This Government are determined to fight knife crime. We have
invested over £110 million in 2023-24 to fight knife crime,
including investing in 20 violence reduction units, and funding
hotspot policing in the most seriously affected areas.
Mr French
I welcome the news that the Government are seeking to close the
legal loopholes around the sale of so-called zombie knives, but
does my right hon. Friend agree that stop and search and the like
are powerful tools for the police to get knives off the street
and to save lives? Will he also look closely at scan and search
to help to detect such weapons?
My hon. Friend is quite right that we are looking to tighten the
law. The Offensive Weapons Act 2019 contains a loophole,
essentially, which means zombie knives without threatening
writing on the blade are not illegal. We are going to close that
loophole. I agree with him that stop and search is a vital tactic
to keep our streets safe when used, of course, respectfully. The
Metropolitan Police Commissioner tells me that about 400 knives
are taken off the streets every month using stop and search in
London alone, so it is an important power. I also agree with my
hon. Friend’s second point. The use of scanning technology has
the huge potential to enable officers to scan people for knives
at a distance without having to physically stop them and search
them manually. The technology is not ready to deploy just yet,
but I hope it will be in the relatively near future.
In 2021, two police officers were attacked with machetes in West
Bromwich town centre. In the same year, a 19-year-old boy was
stabbed and killed in Great Barr. In 2022, a teenager from my
constituency was stabbed on his way to college in Birmingham.
While the Minister said we have already banned the sale of zombie
knives, that has not stopped people purchasing these dangerous
weapons, so I thank the Government for taking the next steps to
close the loophole. Will this change be brought forward as soon
as possible?
The change certainly will happen as soon as possible. Some of it
requires primary legislation, but other elements require
secondary legislation, and we are definitely going to do that as
soon as we can. As for the sale of these knives, once the Online
Safety Bill passes Parliament—I hope very soon—the sale of these
knives via online marketplaces such as Facebook Marketplace and
Amazon will also be prohibited, addressing my hon. Friend’s point
about sales.
(Denton and Reddish)
(Lab)
We absolutely do need to get a grip on knife crime, which is up
by 70% since 2015 alone. Is the Minister content with the fact
that only 5% of crimes of violence against the person actually
make it to court? If he is not, what is he doing about it?
On the crime statistics, the Crime Survey of England and Wales is
the only long-term data series endorsed by the Office for
National Statistics. Since the hon. Gentleman asked about data,
since 2010—just to pick a date arbitrarily—violence is down by
46%. That is to say, violent crimes were double under the last
Labour Government compared with now. Knife-enabled crime was 7%
lower in the latest year compared with the year ending December
2019, according to police recorded crime. But we would like to do
more, hence the “Grip” hotspot patrols, hence criminalising these
remaining zombie knives.
To actually answer the hon. Gentleman’s question, I want that
figure for prosecutions be higher, and that is why the Home
Secretary and I, together with policing leads, the College of
Policing and the National Police Chiefs’ Council, announced two
or three weeks ago that the police are now committing to always
follow all reasonable lines of inquiry where they exist.
Mr Speaker
Order. I love the full answers, but I am really struggling to get
even part-way down the Order Paper.
(Huddersfield)
(Lab/Co-op)
I draw the Minister’s attention to the sad fact that most MPs
have had the tragedy of knife crime in our constituencies. We had
a dreadful incident in Huddersfield. Is it not time that we
understand more the culture that produces it? This is about the
way in which young people communicate on the internet and the
fact that we no longer have many youth clubs or youth services.
We used to have wonderful police going into schools to talk about
these issues. Can we have that back?
I will try to be brief. We have violence reduction units designed
to provide those activities. We are also funding research. We
have a social media hub in the Met police that monitors social
media—it is based in Lambeth, and I have been to it. The things
that the hon. Gentleman asks for are being done, because it is
essential that we tackle knife crime.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Birmingham, Yardley)
(Lab)
Rapes at knifepoint are at a record high this year. The number of
cases has more than doubled since 2015. I am currently supporting
a case of a woman violently raped using weapons, and the
detective on the case told me that he is the only detective in
his team working on serious sexual violence. The Police
Foundation describes the current number of detectives as a
“chronic shortage”, highlighting a staggering 7,000 vacancies. Is
it any wonder that there has been a 60% drop in the overall
proportion of crimes being charged since 2015, including almost 1
million violent crimes and 36,000 rapes? The Labour party has
proposed requiring all police forces to have a scheme that
directly recruits detectives with relevant professional
backgrounds, so what are the Government doing about this chronic
shortage of detectives and the abysmal charge rate that they
preside over?
The rape charge rate is a serious matter, and Operation Soteria
Bluestone, which the hon. Lady will be familiar with, has been
rolled out around the country under the supervision of the
safeguarding Minister, my hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire
Dales (Miss Dines). In the forces that adopted that measure
early, rape charge rates dramatically increased by two to three
times. As that rolls out around the country, those charge rates
will increase, but we would like to go further.
On the question of specialist trained officers, now that we have
record numbers of officers across England and Wales as a whole,
we will be targeting individual forces with training and
recruiting a specified number of specialist officers to make sure
that those people are in place to properly investigate these
issues, because we want to do a lot more in this area.
Police: Compensation
(Blackburn) (Lab)
6. What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of
State for Justice on the adequacy of compensation for police
officers injured in the course of their duties. (906418)
(Newport West) (Lab)
16. What recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of
State for Justice on the adequacy of compensation for police
officers injured in the course of their duties. (906430)
The Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire ()
The police injury benefit scheme provides ongoing and one-off
payments to former police officers who have been injured or
disabled in the line of duty.
I was recently shocked to discover that police officers are
entitled to official compensation only if they are injured while
taking an exceptional risk, and a risk is considered exceptional
only if it would not normally be expected. That sounds strange,
does it not? With more than 40,000 assaults against police in the
past year, and many officers ineligible for injury compensation
because of that rule, does the Home Secretary agree that these
guidelines effectively normalise violence against police and must
be changed?
We certainly do not want to see violence against police
normalised. That is why we legislated to double the maximum
sentence for assaults against emergency workers just a year or
two ago. My understanding is that the payments under the police
injury benefit scheme can go up to 85% of salary, but since the
hon. Lady has raised the point, I will take a look at it.
Over recent years, a number of police officers have tragically
died in the line of duty, and I acknowledge the service of PC
Nicola Hughes, PC Fiona Bone and Sergeant Graham Saville. Labour
has supported calls for a posthumous medal for fallen officers.
Why will the Minister not do the right thing and acknowledge
those who gave their lives to keep us safe?
We do acknowledge that, and it may well be that posthumous awards
are made. We obviously do not comment on individual cases and
potential awards prior to their being made, but if I say that I
strongly sympathise with what the hon. Lady just said, I think
she will understand what I mean.
Crime Reduction
(Don Valley) (Con)
7. What steps she is taking to reduce crime. (906419)
(Warrington South) (Con)
23. What steps she is taking to reduce crime. (906437)
The Secretary of State for the Home Department ()
Our communities are safer than in 2010, with overall crime on a
like-for-like basis down by 54%. We have put 20,000 more police
officers on our streets—a record number—which is enabling us to
take action across the board to bring more offenders to justice,
to better protect victims and to equip our police with the powers
they need to prevent crimes.
The fall in crime is welcome, but does my right hon. and learned
Friend agree that the police would deter and solve even more
crimes, such as burglaries, the use of quad bikes and general
antisocial behaviour in places such as Hatfield, Doncaster,
Rossington and Thorne in my constituency, if they started putting
more bobbies on the beat and stopped promoting unscientific
ideologies?
My hon. Friend is quite right. We pay the police to fight crime.
Whether that is to focus on the antisocial behaviour, the
nuisance bikers or the burglaries he mentioned, they are there to
keep people safe. We do not pay them to wave flags at parades, to
dance with drag queens or to campaign. That is why I finally
ended all association with Stonewall at the Home Office and why I
expect all police and crime commissioners and chief constables to
focus on cutting crime and rebuilding confidence, not playing
politics.
I thank the Home Secretary, who recently came to Warrington to
meet the chief constable, Mark Roberts, and our police and crime
commissioner, . We are now at record numbers of
police officers, and alongside that we are at record numbers of
arrests. Cheshire had the second-highest charge and summons rates
in England and Wales for all crime in the last 12 months. One of
the concerns raised by constituents at a recent surgery was the
increase in cyber-crime. What steps is the Home Secretary taking
to bolster action against fraud and online scams?
My hon. Friend has been an indefatigable champion for his
community, and I very much enjoyed joining him at his local
police station to meet his excellent chief constable, Mark
Roberts, with the PCC. Cheshire is an example of common-sense
policing and protecting the public. With those arrest rates and a
focus on domestic abuse, on which Cheshire constabulary has
achieved some excellence, it deserves all the praise that it
gets.
When it comes to tackling online scams and online fraud, which
are a feature of modern-day crime fighting, earlier this year,
with the Prime Minister, I announced our fraud strategy. One
hundred million pounds from the 2021 spending review has gone
towards tackling fraud. A portion of that will fund a new
national fraud squad of 400 specialist fraud officers across
policing and the National Crime Agency, who will investigate the
most harmful fraudsters targeting the UK public.
(Eltham) (Lab)
Since 2015, the proportion of crimes that result in a perpetrator
facing a punishment has gone down by two thirds. Is that because
the Government had a policy of cutting 21,000 police
officers?
I am incredibly proud of the increased resources for policing,
the increased powers for policing, with the 20,000 new officers
on the frontline that the Government have delivered for the
British people—a record number; we are at historic levels—and the
overall fall in crime since 2010. Yes, there is more to do, but
on all those measures, how did Labour vote? It voted against them
and against the British public.
(Westmorland and Lonsdale) (LD)
The Home Secretary talks about tackling online and telephone
scams, and she is right to do so. Age UK recently came out with
research that showed that 43% of people aged over 65 have been
victims of online or telephone scams of some kind. Will she talk
about how she will use that research and extend the resource she
gives to police authorities such as in Cumbria, as well as
working with banks and other outfits, to ensure that more people
are not victims of this outrageous uptick in scams?
The hon. Member is absolutely right—online crime and fraud has
become a grave feature of today’s criminality. That is why our
fraud strategy is all about targeting this emerging threat.
Whether that is through the national fraud squad that I just
mentioned, banning SIM farms, increasing specialism on the
frontline, or our police forces working with the National Crime
Agency, other agencies and, importantly, the tech and banking
sectors, we will prevent fraud from becoming a reality as well as
detecting it and enforcing against it further down the line.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Nottingham North)
(Lab/Co-op)
The Home Secretary seeks to paint a rosy picture on crime. In
reality, retail crime is, as described by the Co-op, “out of
control”, and with 10,000 fewer neighbourhood police and police
community support officers, that is no surprise. Across all
retailers, there are more than 850 acts of violence or abuse
every single day. The Co-op also reports that even when it
detains someone suspected to have committed a crime, 80% of the
time it has to let them go again because the police are stretched
too thinly to come and make the arrest. When will the Home
Secretary drop this pretence that things are going well and
actually stand up for our shop workers?
We take these matters incredibly seriously. That is why my right
hon. Friend the Policing Minister met the Co-op and other major
retailers recently to discuss this issue in detail. Shoplifting
and retail theft have become a challenge for retailers and our
community, which is not right. That is why, a few weeks ago, we
made a nationwide commitment whereby all police forces have
agreed to follow every reasonable line of inquiry. That will mean
that CCTV footage, online evidence of resale and other actionable
evidence will be followed up by the police, leading the
investigations and justice process.
Illegal Motorcyclists
(South West Bedfordshire)
(Con)
8. What recent guidance she has issued to the police on
apprehending illegal motorcyclists.(906420)
The Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire ()
The illegal use of motorcycles can cause distress and be
dangerous to the public. The police have all the powers they need
to police that, and such use of motorcycles is illegal. The
College of Policing’s authorised professional practice provides
advice to the operationally independent chief constables, whom I
urge to use their powers to the full.
Dangerous motorcyclists are out of control in my area. We have
had one death and one life-threatening injury. We now have six
year olds riding pillion on motorbikes, and people doing wheelies
down roads, pavements and amenity areas, with not a helmet in
sight. My police tell me that they need urgent guidance on
safeguarding officers who try to apprehend them, and an urgent
review of section 59 of the Police Reform Act 2022 on the
requirement that officers be present in uniform at the time of
offending. Would the Minister get on to those specific issues,
please?
I would be happy to look into those specific issues. The police
have powers to pursue, even where the motorcycle rider is not
wearing a helmet. We had similar issues with mopeds in London
four or five years ago. For a time, the police did not pursue
them, and moped crime shot through the roof. They now pursue
them, and it has gone back down. I urge Bedfordshire police to
use those powers, but I will certainly look into the questions
that my hon. Friend has raised.
Children in Custody
(Lewisham East) (Lab)
9. What recent guidance her Department has issued to the police
on upholding the rights of children in custody.(906422)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ( )
Children should be detained only when necessary, and must be
provided with an appropriate adult. The College of Policing
provides operational guidance for police, and the concordat on
children in custody supports police and local authorities to meet
their statutory responsibilities. HM inspectorate of constabulary
and fire and rescue services also sets expectations for the
treatment of children in custody.
When a child is arrested, they must choose if they wish receive
legal advice, just like an adult. But children are not adults,
and no one should expect a child aged 10 or above to decide
whether to exercise their right to a solicitor. Will the Minister
explain why the Government believe that children should be forced
to make such a decision?
Miss Dines
I remind the hon. Lady that children are involved in crime.
Children detained in police custody must have an appropriate
adult—statistics shows that that happens in 99% of cases—who can
be of assistance. I want that to be 100%. Police custody remains
a core part of the criminal justice system. It is critical for
maintaining police confidence, bringing offenders to justice and
keeping the public safe. We must ensure that adults do not abuse
children and are not attracted to making children get involved in
criminal activity because the police are too scared to put them
into custody if necessary.
Substance Misuse: Harm Reduction Model
(York Central)
(Lab/Co-op)
10. What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues
on the potential merits of introducing a substance misuse harm
reduction model to tackle acquisitive crime.(906423)
The Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire ()
We have not had any specific discussions on that, but we have a
10-year drug strategy, which includes spending an extra £582
million over three years on 55,000 extra treatment places. We
want to treat people who are addicted, particularly to opioids,
to get them off drugs and fully recovered.
A large number of people are being exploited into criminal
activity, whether through drug gangs or acquisitive crime. They
need help and support from the state. Will the Minister look at
how to put a harm reduction model in place for those individuals,
rather than criminalising them, so that they can get the support
they need to change the direction of their lives?
There is a twin-track approach. There is a comprehensive effort
to ensure more addicted people get treatment, being diverted to
it from police custody, from the court system and when they leave
prison. As I say, there is an extra £582 million over three
years. We are in the second of those three years at the moment.
But enforcement, particularly against drug gangs and organised
criminal gangs, is important at the border and in the case of
county lines. It is a twin-track approach: enforcement, together
with treatment.
Antisocial Behaviour
(Southend West) (Con)
11. What recent progress her Department has made on reducing
antisocial behaviour.(906424)
(Keighley) (Con)
14. What recent progress her Department has made on reducing
antisocial behaviour.(906428)
(Wrexham) (Con)
15. What recent progress her Department has made on reducing
antisocial behaviour.(906429)
(South Ribble)
(Con)
21. What recent progress her Department has made on reducing
antisocial behaviour.(906435)
The Secretary of State for the Home Department ()
On 27 March, the Government announced the antisocial behaviour
action plan, backed by £160 million of new funding. Police and
crime commissioners are being supported to increase hotspot
policing and to run immediate justice pilots. In July, we
announced round 5 of the safer streets funding to deliver a range
of ASB and crime-prevention measures.
I thank the Home Secretary very much for her recent visit to
Southend, where she met the excellent police, fire and crime
commissioner and our excellent chief
constable B-J. Harrington. She heard about how Southend’s
revolutionary Operation Union has driven down antisocial
behaviour across our city by over 50%. That will be assisted by
the Government’s steps last week to tackle nitrous oxide—I thank
her very much for tackling that menace. However, constituents are
raising with me antisocial behaviour in and around pubs,
including drug-related incidents, so can my right hon. and
learned Friend tell me whether she has any specific plans to help
local police deal with that particular problem?
I was very pleased to join my hon. Friend in Southend, and to
meet her chief constable and the office of the PCC. She is right
that the success of Operation Union has helped to drive down ASB,
but there is more to do to tackle the ASB that blights
communities. That is why I am pleased that her force, Essex, has
the most police officers ever and is doing very well with its
progress on the hotspot policing pilot.
My hon. Friend talks about drugs. Part of our plan on ASB is to
expand drug testing on arrest, so that police can now test for
more substances, class B and C, when they arrest someone on
suspicion of drug possession.
Unfortunately, there are instances of antisocial behaviour in the
centre of Keighley—mostly around the bus station, but of course
there are other hotspot areas. The police and the local community
are having to deal with this issue on an ongoing basis. I am very
pleased that the Government made extra resources available to our
West Yorkshire police via the antisocial behaviour action plan,
but will the Home Secretary join me in urging our Labour West
Yorkshire Mayor, who is responsible for setting local police
strategy and our crime reduction action plan in Keighley, to be
more laser-focused on antisocial behaviour, so that we can all
ensure that the issue is tackled once and for all?
I urge the PCC to take heed of my hon. Friend’s warning and
advice. The Government, through our safer streets fund, have
awarded the South Yorkshire police area over £4 million in recent
years—funding that has gone towards tackling ASB and reducing
crime. It is up to the PCCs to apply in the next round for
funding to put forward projects that can have a focus on reducing
crime, protecting victims and securing safety for
communities.
On occasion, people using Wrexham bus station have been subject
to antisocial behaviour perpetrated by a small band of
disaffected youths. I would like to compliment Inspector Luke
Hughes and the Wrexham city police team for their appropriate use
of dispersal orders. Will the Home Secretary join me in praising
North Wales police, despite being slowed down to 20 mph by the
Welsh Labour Government, for their pragmatic and no-nonsense
approach to upholding public safety?
I am afraid the litany of ridiculous policy announcements by
Labour is reaching record levels. I mean, we only have to look at
the last two days. A period of silence from the Labour party
would be welcome. The 20 mph zone is ridiculous. My hon. Friend
is absolutely right. Dispersal orders are a regrettable but
necessary power that the police have at their disposal. We are
going even further with our antisocial behaviour action plan by
expanding police powers such as public space protection orders
and community protection notices, enabling the police to take
rapid and effective action to disperse people and to stop
nuisance and criminal antisocial behaviour.
Over the summer, I have spoken to many people in Leyland who,
although we have managed to get the police station reopened, are
still reporting problems involving antisocial behaviour in
Broadfield, Worden and Seven Stars. I have been out with the
local bobbies, who are benefiting from the Government’s police
uplift, to see what is being done to tackle those problems.
Operation Centurion—our police and crime commissioner’s attempt
to use money seized from criminals to boost local policing
temporarily in order to address antisocial behaviour—is about to
hit Leyland, but does the Home Secretary agree that we need a
whole-agency approach, and that councils should use the powers at
their disposal to issue community protection notices and work
with the police to end this blight on the people of Leyland?
I am delighted that my hon. Friend has been able to work closely
with her excellent police and crime commissioner, , who is another example of
effective leadership at the police force in Lancashire and whom I
have had the pleasure of meeting. It is also good that Lancashire
is one of the pilot areas for hotspot policing: it is currently
delivering 2,000 hours a month of additional patrolling in
antisocial behaviour hotpot areas, and that is set to increase.
However, I urge the Labour council to listen to my hon. Friend’s
sensible words and ask the police and local authorities to use
all the powers at their disposal to tackle antisocial behaviour
through, for instance, public space protection orders and
community protection notices.
(Newport East) (Lab)
Constituents, including pupils at Lliswerry High School,
constantly raise with me the antisocial and dangerous use of
e-scooters and e-bikes. I held a debate on this last December,
but little has happened since, and legislation needs to catch up
with the growth in their sales. Will the Home Secretary talk to
Ministers at the Department for Transport to see what can be done
to address the problem?
The behaviour of nuisance riders, or boy racers—whatever we want
to call them—is antisocial behaviour plain and simple. It is
criminal, it can be harassing, it can bring fear to communities,
and it can cause criminal damage. The police, working with local
authorities, have the necessary powers to end these problems, and
forces around the country have organised pilots that have led to
success. I encourage the hon. Lady’s local police force to look
at the good practice that is currently taking place around the
country.
(Caithness, Sutherland and
Easter Ross) (LD)
Let us get this exactly right: over the next four years, police
numbers in Scotland are due to fall by 2,000. The highlands and
islands police chief has said that “something has to give.” I had
thought that Barnett consequentials would lead to an increase in
Scotland’s police numbers rather than a decrease. When it comes
to antisocial behaviour, what a grim message this is for some of
the most vulnerable in society.
Unfortunately—it is incredibly tragic—the Scottish National
party’s obsession with separatism has led to the highest number
of alcohol and drug-related deaths in Europe on their watch.
Falling police numbers in Scotland when numbers are rising in
England and Wales—that is what the SNP brings us, and only good
government from the Conservatives can stop crime and protect
victims.
Irregular Migration: Channel Crossings
Dame (South Northamptonshire)
(Con)
12. What steps her Department is taking to reduce the number of
small boats transporting irregular migrants across the English
channel.(906426)
The Secretary of State for the Home Department ()
We remain determined to stop the boats and deter people from
making these dangerous journeys to the UK, and we are making
progress. We have by no means reached the finishing line, but the
number of arrivals is 20% down, the legacy backlog has nearly
halved, and the number of Albanian arrivals has fallen by 90%
this year. While Labour proposes to take thousands of illegal
migrants from the EU every single year, letting Brussels decide
who comes here, we are determined to stop the boats with our
Rwanda plan and our Illegal Migration Act 2023, which Labour
opposed.
Dame
A hotel in my constituency is housing illegal migrants. They
receive local NHS dentistry services and hospital access, and, of
course, their living costs are met. Constituents write to me
pointing out that they do not have access to all those services.
What can my right hon. and learned Friend tell them about how
soon the use of hotels for illegal migrants will end?
It is totally unacceptable that too many towns and cities around
the country now house the 45,000 asylum seekers who are in
hotels, costing the British taxpayer £6 million a day. That is
why we are standing up large sites and vessels around the
country. We are also maximising the use of hotels, so that we can
open fewer hotels. It is not right that the British taxpayer is
forking out the cost. What we are not doing is the ridiculous
plan set out by Labour Members. They are either grotesquely naive
about the problem or they have a betrayal plan to rejoin the EU.
After all, most of them wanted a second referendum. Either way,
we can all see it for what it is: a plan for open borders,
unlimited migration and rejoining the European Union. It is the
same old Labour on the wrong side of the argument.
Mr Speaker
I welcome the shadow Minister, .
(Barnsley Central) (Lab)
It is good to be back, Mr Speaker. The number of people arriving
on dangerous small boats is now 150 times higher than it was five
years ago. Meanwhile, convictions of people smugglers are 30%
down. Our border security is not working. The Home Office has
already spent £140 million on a flawed Rwanda scheme, but would
not taxpayers’ money be better spent recruiting hundreds more
police and investigators to defeat the criminal gang networks and
prevent the dangerous boat crossings?
The reality is that we need a robust and honest approach to
dealing with this problem. Opening our doors to thousands of
migrants from the EU is not the solution. We need a deterrent,
and that is why our agreement with Rwanda will work. It is based
on what has worked in other countries such as Australia, and I am
confident that we will be able to deliver our Rwanda plan as soon
as possible. What is clear is that the Labour party does not even
seem to know what its policy is on small boats. Previously, it
had no plan; now it has tried to put a plan together, but half
its shadow Ministers do not even know how it works. It is only
this Government that have a plan, will deliver Rwanda, have
delivered our groundbreaking legislation and will stop the
boats.
Topical Questions
(Wimbledon) (Con)
T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental
responsibilities.(906438)
The Secretary of State for the Home Department ()
I will make a short topical statement. The range of threats our
country faces is ever evolving, so I want to set out what we are
doing to get ahead of it. We have refreshed our counter-terrorism
strategy, especially by overhauling the Prevent strand so that it
recognises and can counter the driving force of ideology. Our
counter-terrorism operations centre is truly world class and fit
for the 21st century. However, the security threat is wider than
terrorism, and that is why we have passed the National Security
Act 2023, which also addresses the evolving nature of the threat
and contains several measures to modernise counter-espionage
laws. Our comprehensive economic crime plan and legislation have
cracked down hard on the Russian oligarchs upon whom Putin
relies. We will give our courageous and capable intelligence and
security services all the powers they need to keep us safe.
I thank my right hon. and learned Friend for that statement. She
will know that there is continuing widespread concern about the
threat to our national security from the whole-of-state approach
that the Chinese are taking to espionage activities in our
country. I urge her to ensure that our response will mirror that,
and that China is in the enhanced tier of the foreign influence
registration scheme.
National security is our overriding priority as a Government,
particularly at the Home Office. As Home Secretary, it is my job
to oversee the protection of the UK from all types of threats to
our national security. As the Intelligence and Security
Committee’s report has said:
“The Chinese Intelligence Services target the UK and its overseas
interests prolifically and aggressively.”
I will not shy away from calling out the threats from China for
what they are or from making it clear that its agencies regularly
engage in hostile activity towards the UK. We are currently
reviewing the countries that should go into the enhanced tier of
FIRS. There is a strong case to be made for China being put into
it, but I do not want to prejudice the process by which those
determinations will be made, and—
Mr Speaker
Order. We really do have a problem, don’t we? Home Secretary, I
am talking to you. I am bothered, because these are topical
questions and there are people here who want to catch my eye. You
cannot carry on making statements to every question. Topical
means topical. We are going to be here for some while, so I hope
you understand. I call the shadow Home Secretary.
(Normanton, Pontefract and
Castleford) (Lab)
On 7 March, the Home Secretary emailed Conservative supporters
saying
“today we’re changing our laws—and bringing the small boat
crossings to an end.”
Since then, 20,000 more people have arrived. She is not applying
her own law, because it does not work. The use of asylum hotels
is up, with no date to end their use, and foreign criminal
returns are down. The independent chief inspector of borders and
immigration has said:
“This is no way to run a government department.”
He is right, isn’t he? Is that why the Home Secretary is getting
rid of him?
I am incredibly proud of the landmark legislation passed by this
House, which was opposed by the Labour party every step of the
way. This will allow us to detain those who arrive here illegally
and remove them to a safe country like Rwanda.
The point is that at least we have a policy. I am not sure that
anyone on the Labour Front Bench knows what Labour’s plan is for
stopping the boats. Shadow Ministers certainly seem to be making
it up as they go along. There were quotas and then no quotas. The
EU has made it clear that we would be expected to take thousands
more migrants from the EU. Will there be family reunion? We
already have a scheme for family reunion. They are making it up
because they do not have a plan. I think the British people can
see exactly what Labour’s plan is—
Mr Speaker
Order. I do not think the Home Secretary understands what
“topical” means. Could the Whips please explain to their Front
Benchers that we have to get through the Order Paper? You are not
helping me, and I do not know why.
What the Home Secretary said is total waffle. She has no answer
on the inspector because she is afraid of scrutiny. There was no
answer on her failure, just invented garbage about Labour. The
Home Office’s immigration director, asylum director, borders
director and accommodation director are all going or gone because
the only people she removes are the people she needs to do the
job. There has been a 40% increase in the use of asylum hotels
since she became Home Secretary. When will she end the use of
asylum hotels? When will she deal with this shambles, stop the
gimmicks and get a grip?
The right hon. Lady talks about a shambles, but the last four
days have been a great example of a shambles. The EU has called
her party “delusional” when it comes to its grand plan for
stopping the boats. Labour disagrees with the National Crime
Agency on how to solve the problem. The reality is that Labour is
on another planet on how to stop the boats. It is not based in
reality, it is not grappling with this challenge and it is not
being honest with the British people.
(Rochester and Strood)
(Con)
T2. Constituents and businesses are being impacted by illegal car
racing and meets. The Labour council is dragging its heels on
implementing a public spaces protection order and Kent police
have been working hard to tackle it, but resources are precious.
Will my right hon. and learned Friend look at how Kent police are
funded? They are having to deal with increasing activity in this
area and, being so close to London, we are seeing increasing
burdens from criminality.(906439)
The Minister for Crime, Policing and Fire ()
I thank my right hon. Friend for her tireless campaigning on
behalf of the people of Rochester and Strood. Kent has record
police officer numbers at 4,261, which is about 10% more than it
ever had under the last Labour Government. We intend to review
the police funding formula. I strongly urge Medway Council to get
on with putting that PSPO in place.
(East Dunbartonshire)
(SNP)
T3. Since we left the European Union, my constituent—a UK citizen
from birth, as was confirmed by the British Nationality
(Regularisation of Past Practice) Act 2023—has been repeatedly
stopped by UK border guards and had his citizenship questioned.
Is this British Government satisfied that the customs and
immigration system is so chaotic that their own citizens are
being othered by the Department’s officials, just because their
parents were born in the EU?(906440)
The Minister for Immigration ()
I have no idea what the hon. Lady is referring to, but I would be
very happy to look into that individual case.
(Warrington South) (Con)
T6. Over the summer, dozens of Traveller caravans have been
illegally pitched in my Warrington South constituency, impacting
playing fields in Appleton Thorn, Bewsey and Dallam, and costing
thousands to clear up. Warrington’s Labour council has avoided
bringing forward proposals, despite having money in its budget.
Does the Minister agree that local authorities need to play their
full part so that the police can be effective in using the
legislation passed by this House?(906443)
Yes, I do agree; local councils should be robust in using the
powers this House granted them, as should the police in terms of
the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022. The police do
have strong powers under the amended Criminal Justice and Public
Order Act 1994, and I urge police forces up and down the country
to use those powers.
(Birmingham, Selly Oak)
(Lab)
We heard a little about retail crime earlier and it is a real
issue in Birmingham, where a number of ugly, violent assaults on
staff have taken place at Co-op stores in my constituency. I was
pleased to hear the Minister’s earlier response. However, with
less than 4% of about 8 million crimes actually recorded by the
police, when can we expect to see the tougher measures he hinted
at earlier?
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. I met
representatives of the Co-op just a week or two ago and his chief
constable, Amanda Blakeman, who leads on this for the National
Police Chiefs’ Council. At my request, the police are working up
a plan to make sure that they always look into the CCTV footage
to try to get a facial recognition match, in order to arrest and
prosecute shoplifters, and that they patrol a lot more regularly
in areas where shoplifting is a problem.
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