Correspondence

Update to HASC on Windrush: 7 February 2019 (accessible version)

Published 7 February 2019

Home Office
2 Marsham Street London
SW1P 4DF

Tel: 020 7035 4848
Fax: 020 7035 4745

www.homeoffice.gov.uk

Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP
Home Affairs Committee
Committee Office, House of Commons London
SW1A 0AA

07 February 2019

Dear Yvette,

Below is my latest monthly update on the work of my department in relation to Windrush, in line with the commitments I have previously made to your Committee. This update reflects the status as of 31 December 2018, and provides further detail on:

• The work of the Taskforce
• The historical review of removals and detentions
• The Windrush Compensation Scheme

The Work of the Taskforce

I have provided detail below on the work of the Taskforce, covering the following areas:

• Initial regularisation of status process
• The Windrush Scheme – in-country applications
• The Windrush Scheme – overseas applications

Initial regularisation of status process

On 16 April, the Home Office established a Taskforce to ensure that members of the Windrush generation could evidence their right to be in the UK. This section provides details relating to this immediate Home Office response to Windrush. The data provided covers:

• Individuals contacting the Taskforce and called back by an experienced caseworker
• Individuals given documentation confirming their status
• Nationality of those given documentation confirming their status
• Date of arrival in the UK
• Decision timeliness

Some figures for April to October have changed slightly since the last update, because of the normal process of assuring records on the Casework Information Database, which is a live operational system. There may be more adjustments in future as a result of further assurance work. I have included these figures in italics to make clear where these slight changes have occurred.

Call-back referrals

This table relates to people who believed themselves to be part of the Windrush generation and contacted the Taskforce after the call centre opened on 19 April. They were asked for further details during that call and, if they were considered possible Windrush cases, were referred for a call back from an experienced caseworker.

Month	Total number referred for call backs	Number referred for call backs (enquiry received by phone)	Number referred for call backs (enquiry received by email)
Apr-18	2,873	2,748	125
May-18	3,302	2,925	377
Jun-18	264	197	67
Jul-18	110	89	21
Aug-18	15	12	3
Sep-18	25	25	0
Oct-18	9	9	0
Nov-18	5	5	0
Dec-18	0	0	0
Total	6,603	6,010	593

These numbers include only first contacts with the Taskforce leading to a call back. For the first ten days of the call centre operation, before the introduction of a bespoke IT system, it was possible for a single individual to receive multiple call backs.

Call and email volumes have continued to significantly reduce and there are now very few new Windrush cases contacting the Taskforce.

Individuals given documentation confirming status

The following tables refer to individuals referred to a UK Premium Service Centre after contacting the Windrush Taskforce, and who have been issued with documentation to confirm their right to remain in the UK. Documentation confirming status includes people given Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) and No Time Limit (NTL). Data is broken down by date, by nationality and by date of arrival in the UK. This data comes from the Casework Information Database.

Month	Number of individuals given documentation confirming status
Apr-18	139
May-18	1,284
Jun-18	698
Jul-18	168
Aug-18	114
Sep-18	28
Oct-18	9
Nov-18	8
Dec-18	5
Total	2,453

Some of the people helped by the Taskforce are excluded from this data, such as those people who attended a Premium Service Centre appointment but for whom it was confirmed that they already held the necessary documentation, or those who went on to submit a successful application for citizenship under the Windrush Scheme before they had been issued with ILR or NTL documentation.

Nationality of those given documentation confirming status

The Committee will note that one of the individuals in this table is a British citizen. This is a person who approached the Taskforce to request confirmation of their status, and was issued with a document to confirm the British nationality they already possessed.

Nationality	Windrush pre-1973	Windrush 1973-1988	Windrush Family Member	Not Recorded	Grand Total
Antigua & Barbuda	6	3			9
Aruba	2				2
Australia	21	10			31
Bahamas		1			1
Bangladesh	3	4			7
Barbados	198	26	10		234
British Citizen	1				1
‘British Person Overseas’*	12		2		14
Brunei Darussalam	1				1
Burma (Myanmar)	1	1	1		3
Cameroon		1			1
Canada	38	4			42
Curacao	1				1
Cyprus	2	2			4
Denmark	1				1
Dominica	57	8			65
Dominican Republic	2	1	1		4
France	2				2
Gambia	1	1			2
Germany	1				1
Ghana	7	4	3		14
Grenada	74	20	4		98
Guadeloupe	3				3
Guyana	60	13	2		75
India	81	23	3		107
Ireland	1				1
Jamaica	1,037	114	40	1	1,192
Kenya	12	5			17
Libya	1				1
Malawi		1			1
Malaysia	12	18			30
Malta	9				9
Mauritius	10	4	2		16
Morocco		1			1
New Zealand	12	9	1		22
Nigeria	44	12	4		60
Pakistan	13	9			22
Philippines		1			1
Seychelles	2		1		3
Sierra Leone	6	5	2		13
Singapore	3	2			5
South Africa	7	4			11
Sri Lanka	4	2			6
St Kitts & Nevis	23	3	3		29
St Vincent & the Grenadines	72	7	4		83
St.Lucia	62	6	6		74
Stateless Person (Article 1 of 1954 Convention)	1				1
Trinidad & Tobago	77	14	2		93
Uganda	7	4			11
United Rep of Tanzania	4	3			7
United States of America	6	2	1		9
Unspecified Nationality			1		1
Zambia		3			3
Zimbabwe	3	3	2		8
Grand Total	2,003	354	95	1	2,453

*‘British person overseas’ includes: British National (Overseas), British Overseas Citizen, British Overseas Territories Citizen, British Protected Person, British Subject.

Date of arrival in the UK

This table shows whether individuals given documentation arrived in the UK before or on 1 January 1973 or later, based on evidence gathered and recorded by the Taskforce.

Month	Arrived before 1 January 1973	Arrived after 31 December 1972	Family Member	Not recorded	Total
Apr-18	120	15	4	0	139
May-18	1,076	159	49	0	1,284
Jun-18	553	116	29	0	698
Jul-18	130	29	8	1	168
Aug-18	86	24	4	0	114
Sep-18	22	5	1	0	28
Oct-18	8	1	0	0	9
Nov-18	6	2	0	0	8
Dec-18	2	3	0	0	5
Total	2,003	354	95	1	2,453

Decision timeliness

This table shows the amount of time taken for decisions for those given documentation based on the time between biometric enrolment and the date of the decision being despatched. Biometric enrolment is a key part of the evidence gathering process, which normally occurs at the individual’s first appointment at the Premium Service Centre. The Taskforce aims to complete the decision-making process within two weeks of all the evidence being gathered. Usually this will be from the point that biometrics are taken, although in some cases further evidence is supplied by the applicant or other sources after this point. Some decisions will fall outside these timescales due to their complexity, but for those completed within two weeks the vast majority have been completed on the same day.

Numbers of decisions have continued to reduce as we move through the outstanding applications made before the Windrush Scheme launch. These outstanding cases were more complex cases which required more detailed information gathering before we could issue documentation to the individuals, hence a greater number of these decisions took longer than two weeks.

Month	Decided within 2 weeks of biometric enrolment	Decided beyond 2 weeks of biometric enrolment	Total (by Month)
Apr-18	139	0	139
May-18	1,259	25	1,284
Jun-18	585	113	698
Jul-18	15	153	168
Aug-18	4	110	114
Sep-18	4	24	28
Oct-18	3	6	9
Nov-18	0	8	8
Dec-18	1	4	5
Total	2,010	443	2,453

The Windrush Scheme – in-country applications

On 24 May, I issued a Written Ministerial Statement to the House setting out the Windrush Scheme, which ensures that members of this generation, their children born in the UK and those who arrived in the UK as minors will be able to apply for citizenship, or various other immigration products, free of charge. The Scheme came into force on 30 May.

The following section includes information on:

• Number of individuals granted citizenship or NTL/ILR under the Scheme
• Nationality of individuals granted citizenship or NTL/ILR under the Scheme
• Date of arrival in the UK
• Refusals under the Windrush Scheme

Number of individuals granted citizenship or NTL/ILR under the Scheme

Month	Number of individuals granted citizenship or NTL/ILR	Number of individuals granted citizenship	Number of individuals granted NTL/ILR
May-18	0	0	0
Jun-18	590	587	3
Jul-18	901	870	31
Aug-18	790	660	130
Sep-18	382	295	87
Oct-18	527	409	118
Nov-18	491	355	136
Dec-18	335	230	105
Total	4,016	3,406	610

Nationality of individuals granted citizenship or NTL/ILR under the Scheme

There are 34 British citizens included in this table. These are individuals who approached the Taskforce to request confirmation of their status, and were issued with a document to confirm the British nationality they already possessed.

Nationality	Windrush pre-1973	Windrush 1973-1988	Windrush Family Member	Not Recorded	Grand Total
Antigua & Barbuda	8		3		11
Aruba	3				3
Australia	66	10	1	1	78
Austria	1	1			2
Bahamas	1				1
Bangladesh	13	9	1		23
Barbados	274	13	18		305
Belgium	2	1			3
Belize			1		1
British Citizen	13	4	17		34
‘British Person Overseas’*	27	2	1		30
Brunei Darussalam	1				1
Burma (Myanmar)	4		1		5
Canada	90	13	1		104
Chile		1			1
China	1				1
Curacao	1				1
Cyprus	11	2			13
Democratic Republic of the Congo		1			1
Denmark	4	1			5
Dominica	81	6			87
Dominican Republic	3		2		5
Ethiopia			2		2
Fiji	1				1
France	6	4	1		11
Gambia	1				1
Germany	7	4			11
Ghana	23	10	7		40
Greece	1				1
Grenada	118	14	8		140
Guadeloupe	3				3
Guyana	71	7	3		81
Honduras		1			1
India	367	77	10	1	455
Iraq		1			1
Ireland	4	1	1		6
Italy	35	7			42
Jamaica	1,475	106	104	1	1,686
Kenya	19	5	3		27
Libya	1				1
Malawi	1				1
Malaysia	39	14	4		57
Malta	35	6	1		42
Mauritius	14	6	3		23
Morocco	1				1
Netherlands	3	4	1		8
New Zealand	23	10	3		36
Nigeria	48	11	9		68
Norway		1			1
Pakistan	24	8	3		35
Panama		1			1
Portugal	1				1
Seychelles	2	1	1		4
Sierra Leone	7	2	4		13
Singapore	4	6			10
Slovenia			1		1
South Africa	15	6	1		22
Spain	4				4
Sri Lanka	5	1			6
St Christopher & Nevis	1				1
St Kitts & Nevis	22		2		24
St Vincent & the Grenadines	93	7	10		110
St.Lucia	89	9	12		110
Stateless Person (Article 1 of 1954 Convention)	1				1
Sweden	1	2			3
Tonga	1				1
Trinidad & Tobago	110	15	5		130
Turkey		1			1
Uganda	12	1			13
Ukraine	1				1
United Rep of Tanzania	6	1			7
United States of America	14	12	3		29
Unspecified Nationality	1		8		9
Uruguay			1		1
Vietnam		1			1
Zambia		2			2
Zimbabwe	6	5	2		13
Grand Total	3,320	434	259	3	4,016

*‘British person overseas’ includes: British National (Overseas), British Overseas Citizen, British Overseas Territories Citizen, British Protected Person, British Subject.

Date of arrival in the UK

Month	Arrived before 1 January 1973	Arrived after 31 December 1972	Family Member	Not recorded	Total
May-18	0	0	0	0	0
Jun-18	532	31	27	0	590
Jul-18	790	34	77	0	901
Aug-18	666	83	41	0	790
Sep-18	308	57	17	0	382
Oct-18	427	70	30	0	527
Nov-18	360	91	40	0	491
Dec-18	237	68	27	3	335
Total	3,320	434	259	3	4,016

The Windrush Scheme – overseas applications

Since the launch of the Windrush Scheme, the Taskforce has also received applications overseas, albeit in much smaller volumes than from people in the UK. We continue to work through these applications, and the following table details the types of documentation granted to date:

Period	Granted Right of Abode	Granted Returning Residents Visa	Granted Visit Visa	Granted LOTR	Application Withdrawn	Total
May to December 2018	15	48	17	1	11	92

Refusals under the Windrush Scheme

We continue to issue refusals to individuals who have submitted applications under the Windrush Scheme. To the 31 December the Taskforce has issued a total of 384 refusals. 272 of these refusals were issued to individuals who are in the UK. The remaining 112 were issued to individuals who applied overseas.

As I outlined in my previous updates, none of the refusal decisions have been made lightly, and all of them have had lengthy and detailed consideration. The decision to refuse in these cases has been checked and challenged extensively at operational level and been approved at Ministerial level. Policy experts have been engaged to ensure that all refusals are in line with our policies and guidance.

Reviews of refusals under the Windrush Scheme

Any individuals who receive refusal notifications have the right to request a free review, which will be undertaken by an experienced member of staff in the Chief Casework Unit. This team is entirely independent of the teams responsible for initial decision-making and can provide additional assurance that decisions are correct. The following table outlines the progress of these reviews, as at 31 December:

Period	Requests for review of refusal	Review in progress	Decision upheld	Decision overturned
To end December 2018	42	12	30	0

I will continue to provide updates on these cases.

Support to vulnerable individuals and those experiencing hardship

The Taskforce has a dedicated Vulnerable Persons Team (VPT) to provide help and advice where safeguarding and vulnerability issues are identified. Whilst all members of the

Taskforce are equipped to identify, handle and offer support to vulnerable customers, the VPT was established to ensure that those in most urgent need could obtain support and advice via a single point of contact within the Taskforce. The VPT has had notable success in resolving individual issues and building trust. This has been reflected in the feedback provided to the team by those who have received assistance.

By the end of December, the VPT has provided support to 614 individuals with 52 cases ongoing. They continue to receive 10 – 20 new referrals each week.

The VPT have made 215 referrals to DWP in relation to fresh claims and reinstatement of benefits, with 177 individuals given advice and support on issues relating to housing.

Urgent and exceptional support

When I announced the extension of the consultation period for the Windrush Compensation Scheme on 11 October, I acknowledged that there may be some urgent and exceptional cases where it is right to consider whether individual circumstances warrant support to be provided before the Compensation Scheme is in place.

The policy for support in urgent and exceptional circumstances, setting out the approach and decision-making process for these cases was published on 17 December. The scheme has a very clear purpose to provide support to members of the Windrush cohort who have an urgent and exceptional need, and compelling reasons why this cannot wait for the full compensation scheme.

We have a service standard of making a decision within 10 working days of receipt of evidence. All decisions are subject to a robust quality assurance process, including sign-off at a senior management level.

The following table details the status of claims under the policy, as at 31 December:

Period	Requests for support	Under consideration	Approved	Declined
To end December 2018	16	10	1	5

Historical review of removals and detentions

In a previous update, I informed the Committee that I had written to offer a full, formal apology to the 18 individuals (or, in the case of the three deceased, their families) whom we consider are most likely to have suffered detriment between 2002 and 2017/18 because their right to be in the UK was not recognised, of which 15 have been sent. My officials continue to work proactively to trace the remaining two individuals and next of kin of the other deceased individual so that the three outstanding letters can be sent on.

For the wider group of 164, who were detained and / or removed and who told the Home Office they came to the UK before 1 January 1973, identified in the historical review, which includes the 18, I can now confirm that we have traced 131 individuals. These individuals either already have status, are now in contact with the Taskforce or, in the case of 17 individuals, are deceased. The Taskforce is continuing to work proactively with partners in the UK and overseas to obtain contact details for the remaining individuals, and to make contact.

I will continue to keep the Committee updated on the progress of this work and as I have said before, the work of the historical review unit will be independently audited.

Contact made with the 83 individuals removed

I would also like to provide an update on the contact we have made with those who have been removed. Of the 83 individuals identified in the historical review who were removed, we have made contact with 52. Those 52 individuals are a subset of the overall total of 131 individuals we have made contact with and which we refer to above.

10 individuals are deceased and there are 21 individuals whom we have so far been unable to contact, despite attempting to do so in a number of different ways. For example, where the Home Office does not hold any current contact details, we have contacted the Department for Work and Pensions and HMRC to see if their records confirm a current footprint in the UK or whether a pension from overseas is being received. We have also worked with the relevant British High Commissions to try and make contact with those who may be living overseas.

Of the 52 individuals with whom we have made contact, their current status is as follows.

Status of individuals removed with whom the Home Office has made contact

Current status of individuals contacted
Indefinite Leave to Remain/other Leave to remain granted by the Taskforce	3
10 year visitor visa granted by the Taskforce	3
Right of Abode / Citizenship granted by the Taskforce	9
Will be submitting an application under the Windrush Scheme	32
Confirmed they will not be making an application	5
Total	52

Windrush Compensation Scheme

The consultation on the Windrush Compensation Scheme closed on 16 November. I am pleased that more people had the opportunity to submit written responses and take part in engagement events as a result of the consultation being extended for a further five weeks from the original date. Since that time the Home Office has been assessing the views submitted during the consultation and using that information to help design the final shape of the compensation scheme. I have committed to putting in place the scheme as quickly as possible, now that the consultation has ended, and I expect to publish the Government’s response to that exercise shortly.

I continue to believe it is important that we take a cross party-approach which recognises the most important thing we can do is ensure the wrongs which some members of the Windrush generation have faced are put right. I can reassure members that my department remains entirely focussed on righting the wrongs experienced by the Windrush generation.

Yours sincerely,

Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP