The number of homeless families in Coventry has more than tripled over the last three years, while the number of homeless children has increased eightfold in the last five years, with more than 600 children spending Christmas in temporary accommodation. Why does the Secretary of State think that the number of homeless families and children has increased so significantly under this Government?

We do not collect this information. However, figures for the number of total households in temporary accommodation in another local authority district are published in live table 775 of the Statutory Homelessness and Prevention and Relief publication, which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statistics.

Please refer to the answer given for PQ 40665 which was answered on the 27th June 2016.

The Home Office does not hold the specific information in the format requested. The questions cover a number of different casework operations and the information is not recorded centrally in a way which can be reported on directly.

To obtain the information would involve examining individual case records and would incur disproportionate cost. We do not currently plan to change the data that is centrally recorded and published on this category of applications.

The Home Office does not hold the specific information in the format requested. The questions cover a number of different casework operations and the information is not recorded centrally in a way which can be reported on directly.

To obtain the information would involve examining individual case records and would incur disproportionate cost. We do not currently plan to change the data that is centrally recorded and published on this category of applications.

The Home Office does not hold the specific information in the format requested. The questions cover a number of different casework operations and the information is not recorded centrally in a way which can be reported on directly.

To obtain the information would involve examining individual case records and would incur disproportionate cost. We do not currently plan to change the data that is centrally recorded and published on this category of applications.

The final report on the handling of family reunion applications has not yet been sent to the Home Office by the Chief Inspector of Borders and Immigration.

Arrangements for publication will be considered once the final report has been received

The Government has been clear that there will be no immediate changes in the circumstances of European nationals and their family members entering or currently residing in the UK.

A project to identify and protect vulnerable people in the camps in Calais is being delivered by a French non-government organistation, France Terre D'Asile (FDTA). FDTA finds potential victims of trafficking and exploitation (including children), and directs them to existing protection, support and advice within France. The managment of asylum claims and the protection of children in Calais is primarily a matter for the French authorities but the UK has contributed £530,000 towards the costs of this project, which launched formally in December 2015.

The FDTA has carried out a survey of children in the camps in the Calais area, which indentified, within the scope of the survey, 43 children with claimed family links to the UK. We are working closely with the French Goverment, UNHCR and FDTA to ensure that where family links are established, transfers take place efficiently under the Dublin Regulation.

The Dublin Regulation is the mechanism for determining which EU Member State is responsible for examining an asylum claim, not whether an individual qualifies for asylum. Any request to the UK from another Member State to unite family members under the Dublin Regulation is carefully considered: where someone seeking asylum elsewhere in the EU can demonstrate they have close family members legally in the UK, we will take responsibility for that claim. We make decisions based on all evidence available to us and where it is coherent, verifiable and sufficiently detailed to establish family links.

The visas issued to non-EEA nationals who are coming from overseas to stay in the UK for more than six-months are limited to 30 days duration because they are intended to act as a means of enabling the person to travel to the UK and to collect their biometric residence permit (BRP) following their arrival in the country. When a family reunion application is made individuals can specify the date they would like the visa to start to enable them to make any necessary travel arrangements, including obtaining exit visas.

The start date of the visa can be deferred for up to three months from the date of application. If there is any delay expected in the processing time of the application, the individual will be contacted by UKVI and informed about the delay. Where someone is unable to make arrangements to travel to the UK within the 30 day period, they can apply for a replacement visa.

We are aware that a small number of families have experienced difficulties with the visa procedures to enable them to join their family members in the UK, and have sought to address these issues by updating the guidance we issue to Entry Clearance Officers on family reunion applications.

The updated guidance on dealing with Family Reunion applications is currently being finalised and will shortly be available on GOV.UK at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/asylum-decision-making-guidance-asylum-instructions

The information is provided in the table, based on the available published statistics which relate to the ‘Family: other’ category, which are known to very largely consist of family reunion cases .

The latest quarterly Home Office immigration statistics on entry clearance visas are published in ‘Immigration Statistics’, available from the Home Office website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-statistics

This is provisional management information that is subject to change. It has not been assured to the Standard of Official Statistics.

Under the family reunion provisions in the Immigration Rules children are not eligible to sponsor parents or grandparents. Allowing them to do so would create a perverse incentive for children to be encouraged, or even forced, to leave existing family units in their countries of origin and risk hazardous journeys to the UK in order to act as sponsors. This would go against our safe guarding responsibilities.

Our refugee family reunion policy allows a spouse or partner and children under the age of 18 of those granted refugee status or humanitarian protection in the UK to reunite with them here, providing they formed part of the family unit before the sponsor fled their country of origin.

There is provision to grant visas outside the Immigration Rules, which caters for those who do not qualify under the rules, where there are exceptional circumstances.

New family Immigration Rules, including a minimum income threshold for British citizens sponsoring a non-EU partner, were implemented on 9 July 2012 to prevent burdens on the taxpayer, promote integration and tackle abuse.

We have continued to keep the new Rules under review and to make adjustments in light of feedback on their operation and impact. We have also taken into account the findings of the courts, including the July 2014 Court of Appeal judgment upholding the lawfulness of the minimum income threshold.

The Home Office has a unit processing Dublin III asylum transfer requests from and to the United Kingdom. This unit comprises 78.34 full time equivalent managers, caseworkers and support staff.

Whilst all asylum claims including those accepted under Dublin III are registered on the Home Office Case Information Database (CID), this data is not currently held in a way that allows it to be reported on automatically and is therefore not currently available.

The Government continues to work with key EU Member States to ensure the Dublin Regulation family reunification process works effectively.

Under the UK-France Joint Declaration of 20 August 2015, the UK and France have committed to ensuring that the provisions of the Dublin III Regulation are used efficiently and effectively. To assist the handling of such cases, the two Governments have established a permanent official contact group, agreed single points of contact within respective Dublin Units and we have seconded an asylum expert to the French administration to facilitate the improvement of all stages of the process. The UK and France are running regular joint communication campaigns in northern France which inform unaccompanied children and others of their right to claim asylum in France and of the family reunion process.

We are also providing support to the Dublin Units in Greece and Italy bilaterally and through European Asylum Support Office. On 4 May we announced the Government will work with local authorities on plans to resettle unaccompanied children from Europe. We are looking to transfer children who were already present in Europe before the EU-Turkey deal came into force on 20 March, where it is in their best interests.

We will work closely with local authorities to implement this initiative. It is important that we ensure we fulfil our obligations to children who are already in the UK, as well as ensuring we have the right support for those who may be brought to the UK from Europe. We will also consult relevant Non-Governmental Organisations, the UNHCR, UNICEF and Member States.

When a family reunion application is made, individuals can specify when they would like the visa to be valid from to take account of their need to make the necessary travel arrangements. If there is any delay expected in the processing time of the application, the individual will be contacted by UKVI and informed about the delay. Where someone is unable to make arrangements to travel to the UK within 30 days, they can apply for a replacement visa.

We continue to engage with stakeholders to ensure we deliver further improvements including reviewing the visa issuing processes and associated guidance.

Will the Secretary of State work with organisations such as the Red Cross to explore alternative ways of submitting family reunion applications, to avoid dangerous journeys to third-party countries?