-
Question
Will the Minister confirm that zero Afghans have returned to bridging hotels since September, and are contracts only extended for new arrivals? How many new arrivals have been placed in hotels since September?
Minister reply
The Government has ensured no Afghans have returned to bridging hotels since September. Contracts being referred to as ‘extended’ pertain exclusively to new arrivals who have yet to be matched with settled accommodation solutions.
-
Question
What is the current figure of people registered as homeless since over 1,000 were mentioned in a previous statement?
Minister reply
While I cannot provide an exact number, it remains less than 5% of those relocated from Afghanistan. The Government continues to work with local authorities for rapid housing solutions.
-
Question
How many Afghans are currently in military accommodation and how long do you expect them to remain there?
Minister reply
Approximately 2,000 people have been relocated into MOD sites for temporary accommodation. We aim to move these individuals into permanent housing as quickly as possible.
-
Question
When does the Minister expect another 4,000-4,500 arrivals and where will they be housed?
Minister reply
We anticipate welcoming approximately 4,000-4,500 additional arrivals. Housing solutions are being explored to minimise transitional hotel accommodation use.
-
Question
Welcomes new role as shadow Minister for Veterans. Acknowledges previous work by Rachel Hopkins. Pays tribute to Operation Pitting, those who served alongside UK forces in Afghanistan, and those who assisted them. Criticises missed targets for clearing ARAP backlog; families still awaiting permanent accommodation; data breach fines from ICO. Asks minister about hotel exit plan, number of new arrivals since September, current figures on temporary accommodation under local authority homelessness provision, military sites being used for housing, expected arrivals and their housing locations.
Minister reply
Welcomes hon. Gentleman to his post. Provides details on current figures: 215 families remain in temporary accommodation; around 1826 ARAP-entitled personnel still in Pakistan. 70% of new arrivals will be pre-matched to houses. Confirms no one has slept rough as a result of policy and aims for settled accommodation for all entitled personnel.
-
Question
Welcomes minister’s effort in bringing Afghans to safety; supports use of military accommodation for housing. Raises concern over hotel accommodations near Lyneham, where asylum seekers and refugees are housed. Asks minister to address this issue.
Minister reply
Thanks hon. Friend for question; pays tribute to Wiltshire Council’s work in providing empty military accommodation. Acknowledges different operating box within Afghan cohort (ARAP & ACRS); Home Office handling wider migration issues.
-
Question
Expresses shame and embarrassment over failure of ARAP and ACRS schemes; highlights issue of small boats in the channel. Questions conversations with Pakistan counterparts, concerns about deportations. Criticises quality of accommodation and support services for Afghans.
Minister reply
Refers to working day in, day out to get those to whom we owe a duty back to UK into settled accommodation; has had assurances from Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary and Chief of Defence Staff that individuals will not be deported back to Pakistan.
-
Question
I thank the Minister for this statement, and I know he takes these matters seriously, as do Members across the House. On Monday, in response to an urgent question, the Minister for Armed Forces said that certain members of the CF333 and ATF444 taskforces will not be eligible for relocation under ARAP. The Minister for Veterans’ Affairs well knows, as do I, that the Triples were recruited by the UK, led by the UK and paid by the UK. We owe them a debt of gratitude, and it is a matter of honour. Does the Minister share my concern that based on what the Minister for Armed Forces said on Monday, the ARAP criteria do not guarantee qualification for the Triples? He will share my concern that many have already been rejected, and some undoubtedly already are dead. What more can be done to support the Triples?
Minister reply
I pay tribute to my friend, who I know commanded one of these units at a similar time to when I was in Afghanistan. While technically the Minister for Armed Forces was right that they were led and had direct command chains into the Afghan Government, there will be no attempt whatever from this Government to close down avenues for those who served in 333 and 444 taskforces. We will keep going until we achieve our objective.
-
Question
I welcome the Minister’s statement, but I have to use the opportunity to speak on behalf of my constituent. Since travelling to the UK as part of Operation Pitting in August 2021, his wife is receiving death threats and two years on, he is still waiting for further information on how his family will be resettled.
Minister reply
If the hon. Member writes to me with that particular case today, I will have a look at it and have an answer for her today.
-
Question
The data breaches affecting 265 people who worked with the UK Government in Afghanistan are incredibly serious, and the Afghan resettlement scheme has had numerous issues from the start. Does the Minister accept that eligibility loopholes remain? Will he commit to correcting those in the new year?
Minister reply
I reiterate what I said earlier: it is a clear red line for me as it is for this Government. For those who are eligible for those schemes and who are entitled to be in the United Kingdom in settled accommodation, it will happen.
-
Question
I thank the Minister for his statement but the system is still shambolic. I had a constituent who was a member of the special forces and trying to get his family here was complete chaos. Who is actually in charge of this? May I pick up on what the Minister just said to my hon. Friend Dan Jarvis? Is the Minister actually saying, in contradiction to what the Minister for Armed Forces said on Monday, that this scheme does apply to the Triples?
Minister reply
The two things that the Minister for Armed Forces was saying on Monday are correct. Being in a taskforce does not automatically entitle someone to be in the United Kingdom because while that might initially get them through the eligibility criteria, there may be well-founded reasons why that individual does not settle into accommodation in the UK.
-
Question
I thank the Minister for including the word “integration” in his statement. This weekend I met a man who is now settled through the ARAP scheme in a permanent home after living for over a year in a hotel elsewhere with his family. Although he is hugely grateful to the Government, he has had no support to find properly paid work that uses the skills and experience that the UK valued when he worked for our specialist services in Afghanistan.
Minister reply
There would have been a lot of money and support thrown at such individuals and communities as they came in. There is the £20,520 integration fund, which is specifically for that purpose. Clearly, we are balancing different competing pressures when it comes to individuals getting into jobs.
-
Question
My constituent’s sister and 70-year-old mother, who were accepted on to the ACRS in January this year, have since been stuck in Pakistan alone and are now homeless. They cannot afford exit visas from Pakistan. Will the Minister take a look into this individual case and get back to me as soon as possible?
Minister reply
Just this morning I have commissioned work to look at what we can do about visa fees. We are looking at how we overcome that, but I am more than happy to look at his individual case as well.
-
Question
I was pleased to hear this week that unused MOD service family accommodation in my constituency is going to be utilised to house Afghan families. The Minister seems to have gone some way to unblocking the logjam. I met the Prime Minister earlier this year to ask him to look at rescuing Afghan women judges and prosecutors, who have been left behind in severe danger. Will the Minister meet me in the new year to see if he can help break the logjam on this issue as well?
Minister reply
I will absolutely meet the hon. and learned Lady because we hope soon to have something to say about one of these schemes.
-
Question
I thank the Minister again for visiting Cardiff to meet Afghans living in a hotel. He will know about the constructive approach that was taken by Cardiff Council and Vale of Glamorgan Council in working with his Government’s officials to move people into long-term settlement. Can he assure me that underused MOD estate in Wales will be used to the fullest extent?
Minister reply
Yes, of course. I had local authority leaders on the phone yesterday, and I know it is frustrating for people if they feel that the MOD has empty properties in their area that it can be using. We are straining every sinew to make that happen.
-
Question
Thanked the Minister for his commitment to honour the debt owed to Afghan veterans and expressed concern over the fate of Afghan soldiers who are being forced back to Afghanistan due to failed applications under the current scheme, suggesting that revisiting the eligibility process is necessary.
Minister reply
Acknowledged the challenges with the MOD's eligibility process and the complexity in identifying eligible individuals, emphasising a commitment to ensuring careful processing while working towards fulfilling obligations to Afghan veterans.