The Bishop of Durham received the following written answers on 17th October 2023:
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government from what date asylum applications were first treated as withdrawn on the basis that the claimant failed to report or to inform the Home Office of a change of address.
Lord Murray of Blidworth (Con, Home Office): We do not currently publish data on the date asylum claims were first treated as withdrawn on the basis that the claimant failed to report or to inform the Home Office of a change of address. However, official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, as well as quality and availability of data.
Changes to the Immigration Rules were laid on 17 July 2023 and implemented on 7 August 2023 which included amending paragraph 333C to provide clarification on the circumstances in which an asylum claim can be treated as withdrawn.
The withdrawal of asylum claims is not a new process. It is a longstanding principle that claims that are explicitly or implicitly withdrawn will have their consideration discontinued. At each step of the asylum process, claimants are warned about the importance of complying with the asylum process and the prospect of withdrawal of their asylum claim should they fail to do so.
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government what plans they have to publish statistics on the number of asylum applications that are reinstated after initially being withdrawn.
Lord Murray of Blidworth: Statistics on the number of asylum applications that are reinstated after being withdrawn specifically are not planned for publication, though they are a subset of data that is already published.
The Home Office publishes data on asylum in the ‘Immigration System Statistics’ release on GOV.uk. Data on final outcomes of asylum applications is published in table Asy_D04(opens in a new tab) of the ‘asylum and resettlement detailed datasets’. Information on how to use the datasets can be found in the ‘Notes’ page of the workbooks. The latest data relate to 2021. Information on future Home Office statistical release dates can be found in the ‘Research and statistics calendar’.
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the Code of Practice for Statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, as well as quality and availability of data.
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government:
- how many people have been affected by the change to the move-on period for newly recognised refugees, which gives seven days’ notice for them to leave their asylum support accommodation.
- what plans they have to extend the move-on period for newly recognised refugees to at least 56 days, in line with the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 and the applications for Universal Credit; and whether they will publish a strategy to accompany any such plans.
Lord Murray of Blidworth: An individual remains eligible for asylum support for a prescribed period from the day they are notified of the decision on their asylum claim. Where someone is given notice that their asylum claim has been granted, their appeal has been allowed or their asylum claim has been refused but they have been given leave to enter or remain, the prescribed period in legislation is 28 days. There has been no change to the prescribed period.
Individuals should make plans to move on from asylum support as quickly as possible. We offer support through Migrant Help or their partner organisation in doing this. This includes providing advice on accessing the labour market, on applying for Universal Credit and signposting to local authorities for assistance with housing.
We are engaging the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on ensuring individuals can move on from asylum support as smoothly as possible.
Figures on the number of discontinuations are not available in a readily reportable format.
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government what discussions have taken place among (1) the Home Office, (2) the Department for Work and Pensions, and (3) the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, on extending the move-on period for newly recognised refugees to at least 56 days, in line with the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 and applications for Universal Credit.
Lord Murray of Blidworth: The Home Office only has a legal obligation to support someone until the end of the prescribed move-on period. Where someone is given notice that their asylum claim has been granted, their appeal has been allowed or their asylum claim has been refused but they have been given leave to enter or remain, the prescribed period is 28 days.
We are engaging the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities on ensuring individuals can move on from asylum support as smoothly as possible.
The Lord Bishop of Durham asked His Majesty’s Government
- what is the average time for a Biometric Residence Permit to be issued after refugee status has been granted to an individual.
- hether an assessment been made of the barriers preventing a Biometric Residence Permit from being issued at the same time as a letter granting refugee status.
Lord Murray of Blidworth: The waiting times for biometric residence permits (BRP) are dictated by the BRP production and delivery processes.
The Home Office does not have published, verified data on delivery times.
The Church of England in Parliament 
You must be logged in to post a comment.