Amendment 180

Nationality and Borders Bill - Committee (5th Day) (Continued) – in the House of Lords at 9:30 pm on 10 February 2022.

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Lord Oates:

Moved by Lord Oates

180: After Clause 78, insert the following new Clause—“UK immigration status: certification (1) The Secretary of State must issue physical proof confirming immigration status to anyone who has been granted such status under the immigration laws of the United Kingdom and who requests such proof.(2) No fee may be charged for issuing physical proof under this section.(3) The certificate mentioned in subsection (1) must confirm that the relevant person has the relevant status.(4) The certificate mentioned in subsection (1) is valid for right to work checks, right to rent checks and all other checks that may be undertaken by agents within and without the United Kingdom to confirm the relevant person’s UK immigration status including permission to travel to and enter the United Kingdom.”Member’s explanatory statementThis new Clause would require the Government to issue a physical certificate to all people with a UK immigration status, allowing all those with such status to provide documentary proof.

Photo of Lord Oates Lord Oates Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson (Energy and Climate Change)

My Lords, Amendment 180 in my name and those of the noble Baroness, Lady Bennett of Manor Castle, and the noble Lord, Lord McNicol of West Kilbride, would require the Government to provide physical proof of status for those with immigration status in the United Kingdom.

I will try not to detain the Committee too long, because the arguments for providing physical proof alongside digital status have been aired extensively in this House, most recently on the Immigration and Social Security Co-ordination (EU Withdrawal) Bill, when your Lordships overwhelmingly supported a cross-party amendment to this effect for EEA citizens with settled or pre-settled status. At that time, there was no need to argue for such physical proof for those with other immigration status in the United Kingdom because they were already entitled to it—something the Home Office now seems determined to reverse. I will come to that in a moment.

When we discussed this previously, the main arguments advanced by the Government against providing physical proof appeared to be, first, that digital proof was better than physical proof because it could not be lost—putting aside the fact that digital proof can indeed be lost or destroyed, no one ever suggested that physical proof should replace digital proof, but rather that it should complement it; and secondly, that as the Government intended us all to move to a digital-only system at some point, it made sense for the settled status scheme to adopt digital-only from the outset.

If the Government wish to transition to greater reliance on a digital system, which I can perhaps see some merit in, they should do so only after extensive trials and with a physical backup. However, instead of extensive trials before embarking on this course, the Government appear to have conducted only one, in 2018, which found that:

“There is a clearly identified user need for the physical card … and without strong evidence that this need can be mitigated for vulnerable, low-digital skill users, it should be retained.”

So, there was just one government trial, and they simply ignored its findings. The Government then failed to publish a statement on the equality impact assessment of the digital-only scheme, which they admitted had been conducted. The Minister told me on Report of the Immigration and Social Security Co-ordination (EU Withdrawal) Bill only that such a statement would be published shortly. That was nearly a year and a half ago. Can the Minister tell us whether that statement was published and if not, why not?

When we debated the issue at that time, I said that non-EEA citizens who were spouses of EEA citizens in the UK and those with other immigration status had the right to biometric residence cards or permits, meaning that EEA citizens under settled status were the only people with immigration status in the country who did not have the right to physical proof of status. Since then, the Home Office has, extraordinarily, decided to tell employers and those renting property that existing valid biometric residence cards and permits are no longer to be considered proof of status. For those who have never read the right to work guidance, updated on 17 December 2021, you do not want to be an employer, because the complexity involved and what they are being asked to do is huge.

The guidance now states that from 6 April 2022, holders of biometric residence cards, biometric residence permits and frontier workers permits will have to

“evidence their right to work using the Home Office online service only. Employers will no longer be able to accept physical cards for the purposes of a right to work check even if it shows a later expiry date. BRCs, BRPs and FWPs will be removed from the lists of acceptable documents used to conduct a manual right to work check.”

Therefore, the Government are stating that their own permits will no longer be considered acceptable documents. Not content with the huge anxiety that has been caused to EEA citizens by not allowing them to have physical proof of their status, they now want to do the same for everyone, even those with existing government-issued documents. Perhaps the Minister can remind us, because I cannot recall, whether people have to pay for those documents. If they do, will they get a refund if they are no longer valid?

I hope that the Minister can explain the reason for this astonishing decision. It is a decision like the one originally to refuse physical proof to EEA citizens with settled and pre-settled status, which I can only explain as being driven by some sort of bureaucratic convenience, since it takes no account whatsoever of the impact on ordinary people, of the stress and anxiety caused and of the exposure of vulnerable and IT-illiterate people to exploitation by others who take charge of their digital status. Ministers in a democratic system are supposed to prevent bureaucratic convenience trampling over people’s rights, but the Minister and her colleagues seem happy to trample over this.

Since we last debated these issues, in October 2020, the warnings about the consequences of failing to provide physical proof—warnings made by noble Lords on all sides of the House and organisations representing EU citizens, such as the3million—are no longer just warnings. They are borne out by real-life experience. The “view and prove” system has thrown up multiple errors, including: “You are already logged in”, “The details do not match our records”, “Service currently available” and, most chillingly, “We cannot find your status”—all to people who had legitimate status.

There have been problems with updating status; for example, because a person has a new passport. One such person reports: “I got a new passport. I sent it to the resolution centre. They took a copy and sent it back to me. Two months later, my settled status is still not linked to my new passport. I no longer have my old passport as the French Government doesn’t allow keeping the old passport when getting a new one. This is very stressful because I am planning to visit my family in France in January. I have not seen my family since October 2020. I am feeling powerless.”

There have been problems with immigration officials demanding physical proof. There have been problems with accessing mortgages and loans. One such person says: “I have sold and I am buying a house. I have had to apply for another mortgage and the mortgage company won’t process my application until I have a share code. I have still not received a share code. I have called the resolution centre three times and explained the situation. I keep getting told that someone will call me to progress this, and still nothing has happened.”

At the end of last year, the First Ministers of Scotland and Wales and the First and Deputy First Ministers of Northern Ireland wrote to the Home Office with further examples of difficulties caused by lack of physical proof, including

“a citizen being out of work for two and half months … another being denied a crisis grant … a citizen being threatened with being removed from temporary emergency accommodation … a citizen losing out on a number of job openings … citizens having to rely on support organisations to access their proof of status, causing stress and anxiety”, as well as the fear of what would happen if they

“lose access when this support is no longer available”— and all because the Home Office has not moved on an issue that has caused such evidence problems.

However, in what I hope was a glimmer of light and good sense, the Home Office, in its response to your Lordships’ European Affairs Committee’s report on 19 November 2021, undertook to look at the possibility of providing a QR code. This could work along the lines of the Covid passes on our NHS app, which provide digital status of vaccination but which, if we want, we can download as a PDF and print out—just as I have today, as I am going to France and want the reassurance of a physical back-up if I cannot access the NHS app for some reason. That physical proof gives us a sense of confidence and means that, if there is a problem with the digital service, we have something to show. It could be an ideal solution to this issue.

I hope that the Minister can give us in her reply a substantive progress update on the Home Office’s consideration of such an alternative digital status implementation, which could allow all people with immigration status the ability to create physical proof as back-up. I also hope that, if the Home Office goes down that line, it will work with representatives such as the3million, Citizens Advice and others who can give real input on the real-life effect this is having. I know that the Minister is a person who cares about the impacts on individuals, so I hope that she can help the Home Office find the way to a policy that is far more considerate of the real-life experiences of people. I beg to move.

Photo of Baroness Lister of Burtersett Baroness Lister of Burtersett Labour 9:45, 10 February 2022

My Lords, I will very briefly say how much I support the noble Lord, Lord Oates; he made a very powerful case. I freeze over whenever I hear the phrase “digital by default”, so I hope the Minister is not going to use it. We have heard how it railroads over the real-life experiences of people who have real problems with digital by default.

The idea of a QR code as a way through is a very good one. I know there have been discussions with the Home Office, and it is offering hope. However, the 3million is quite worried—certainly in its email to me—because it sees no evidence of anything progressing. I hope the Minister will be able to tell us what progress is being made, because we can brook no delay. This has to happen quickly if we are not to have more of the kinds of problems that the noble Lord outlined.

Photo of Baroness Ludford Baroness Ludford Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson (Exiting the European Union)

I stress that these Benches as a whole support my noble friend Lord Oates’s amendment, as we consistently have. I applaud him for pursuing this issue relentlessly. It seems like one gigantic mess. The EEA citizens under the EU settlement scheme were used as guinea pigs for a digital-only system, although I understand that it is now being extended to everybody. My noble friend referred to a 2018 pilot which basically said not to do it. There does not seem to have been any good policy evaluation along the way, and people are having all these practical problems.

For example, some people cannot go to France because they do not know whether they are going to get back in as their status has not been linked to their new passport. These are major issues for individuals. They may not be major issues from a bureaucratic point of view in the Home Office, but some people are unable to get a mortgage or a job because the system does not work.

I cannot stress enough how much this needs to be sorted out. The noble Baroness, Lady Lister, mentioned the 3million; those of us working with that group find it admirable. The Home Office said it was considering the 3million’s proposal but has failed to engage with it since June 2021, which is eight months ago. The Home Office really needs to focus on this. The Minister has consistently said, “Don’t just bring me criticisms; bring me solutions”—my noble friend has brought a solution.

Frankly, if I can work a QR code for my Covid pass on the app, anyone can—actually, I did get a bit of help from my neighbour at one point. But this is a solution, and it has worked with the Covid pass. I really hope that the noble Baroness can give us some good news and at least go and talk to the 3million.

Photo of Lord Rosser Lord Rosser Shadow Spokesperson (Home Affairs), Shadow Spokesperson (Transport)

I certainly do not want to detain the Committee, but, as has been said, we are in a situation where people’s lived experience is that the lack of proof of their status is an unnecessary issue in everyday life, at least for some. The 3million certainly has examples of people being asked for documents that do not exist when trying to board flights, handing over documents for new jobs or trying to open a bank account, among other things.

There has been consistent cross-party support for this issue since the EU settled status scheme opened. I think the arguments in favour, made in both Houses over a number of years, have been compelling. The Government have been equally consistent in their refusal to move on this issue. Frankly, at times, it has been very difficult to understand why. I hope that this evening we will perhaps get a different message. That is what all those who participated in this debate now want to hear from the Government: whether they are willing to move on this issue and resolve a genuine problem that exists for many people.

Photo of Baroness Williams of Trafford Baroness Williams of Trafford The Minister of State, Home Department 10:00, 10 February 2022

I thank noble Lords who have spoken in this debate and express my admiration for the noble Lord, Lord Oates, on this subject. He is not going to give up on it. He mentioned the QR code, and I totally agree; the QR code has worked brilliantly throughout the pandemic for certain things such as updating your Covid vaccination status. I will take that back to the Home Office and report back on any progress. I know it is not that simple, but we have said that we are considering it and I will report back to the House on its progress.

The noble Lord will not be surprised to hear any of my other arguments, though. When people are granted immigration status, they get a formal written notification of their grant in the form of a letter sent by post or email, which sets out their immigration status in the UK. They can retain it for their own personal records and use it, if they want, when contacting the Home Office about their status. Those issued with a biometric residence permit or an e-visa can use the online services to share that status online with other individuals or organisations, such as employers and landlords. Holders of an e-visa can also print off a copy of their immigration status, which is shown on their online profile, and store it with their personal records.

I know the hour is late, but I will touch on a couple of the other advantages of the e-visa. It puts individuals in control of their own data, gives them direct access to information held by the Home Office about their status and, importantly, adheres to the principles of data minimisation, ensuring that only the information required by a checker, rather than all the information held on a physical card, is made available to the checker. Secondly, information on a physical document might be out of date if a person’s status has changed since it was issued, and a person’s digital status is always up to date.

The noble Baroness, Lady Lister, is going to cringe now, because we are developing a border and immigration service that is “digital by default”, which means that we will increasingly replace physical and paper-based products and services with accessible, easy-to-use online products. My parents were not at all digital by default, but they have become digital by default over time. I know it is difficult when you do not have a physical document in front of you, but it is more and more the way the world is going.

We started the rollout of e-visas in 2018, starting with EU citizens granted status under the beta phases of the EU settlement scheme and expanding to all EEA and Swiss EUSS applicants when the scheme first opened back in March last year, followed by the Hong Kong BNO route, the graduate route and, most recently, the student and skilled worker extension routes. We plan to continue to roll out e-visas incrementally. The Home Office’s ambition is to have biometric residence permits replaced by e-visas by the end of 2024, so that eventually all foreign nationals granted status will have e-visas that can be securely and easily accessed and shared online.

In response to what the noble Lord, Lord Oates, said, so far the online services have been positive. Individuals who struggle can contact the UKVI resolution centre, including by phone.

I will give the House an update on the QR code, but I support the whole principle of being able to use a QR code. With that, I hope the noble Lord will withdraw his amendment.

Photo of Lord Oates Lord Oates Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson (Energy and Climate Change)

My Lords, I thank the Minister for her response. Given the lateness of the hour, I shall not delay proceedings further. I was very encouraged—I think it is the first time I have been really encouraged in these debates—by what the Minister had say: that she would take back this issue of a QR code. It has been around for a while, so I hope that she can push the Home Office on it. There seems to be some ideological or bureaucratic resistance—I do not know what it is—because, as we discussed, this is not a partisan matter; it is a just a matter of giving people the sort of surety they need.

On what the Minister said about digital by default, the study that I quoted from 2018, as well as the trial, made it clear that digital by default does not mean digital only—and it should not have to. If we can find a way with a QR code, I would be absolutely delighted. I hope that the Minister will be able to come back to us before Report with something positive and joyous, but I ask her to involve the representative groups as sector systems develop. I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.

Amendment 180 withdrawn.

Amendment 181 not moved.