Tuesday, March 01, 2022
Tories misread mood of country again
It turns out that the Home Secretary is so obsessed with maintaining as much of her racist and isolationist immigration regime that she cannot even bring herself to make any meaningful changes to accommodate the many Ukrainian refugees seeking to join their family in the UK, despite overwhelming public support in favour of offering asylum.
The Independent reports that ministers have been accused of being “heartless and mean-spirited” after it emerged that a new humanitarian route for Ukrainian refugees amounts to only small adjustments to visa rules which will benefit only certain family members of British citizens:
Home secretary Priti Patel told MPs on Monday that the government had introduced a “bespoke humanitarian route” for people fleeing the Russian invasion in Ukraine, saying it would allow an additional 100,000 Ukrainians to seek sanctuary in the UK.
However, it later emerged that this does not go beyond the easing of rules for a limited pool of family members of UK residents, which was announced over the weekend and has already been branded a “plaster for an open wound”.
Charities criticised the government’s failure to do as the EU has done and waive all visa rules for refugees fleeing Ukraine, which Ms Patel insisted would undermine “the strongest security advice”. Lawyers said they were sceptical about the claims that 100,000 people would be helped under her changes.
Shadow immigration minister Yvette Cooper accused the home secretary of “complete confusion” around what is being offered to Ukrainian refugees, asking her in the House of Commons: “How on earth is the home secretary so unprepared for something she’s been warning about for weeks?”
More than 500,000 people have already fled Ukraine since the beginning of the invasion, and the UN estimates that this figure could reach 4 million.
Temporary visa concessions announced by the Home Office on Sunday mean that certain family members of British nationals who do not meet the usual eligibility criteria but pass security checks may be granted permission to enter the UK outside the rules for 12 months.
However, this applies to spouses, the parents of children under 18, children under 18 and close relatives requiring care - excluding many relatives including parents, adult children, siblings.
Immigration barrister Colin Yeo told The Independent he was “sceptical” about Ms Patel’s claim that the concessions would help 100,000 Ukrainians.
“There aren’t many Ukrainians in the UK so I can’t see how there are going to be 100,000 eligible family members,” he said, adding: “The contrast with the simple generosity shown by the EU seems quite marked.”
A poll by YouGov last week found almost two-thirds of British people would support the introduction of a resettlement scheme for those fleeing Ukraine. Unfortunately, the Tories are not listening, preferring instead to maintain their fortress Britain approach, in defiance of our international obligations.
The Independent reports that ministers have been accused of being “heartless and mean-spirited” after it emerged that a new humanitarian route for Ukrainian refugees amounts to only small adjustments to visa rules which will benefit only certain family members of British citizens:
Home secretary Priti Patel told MPs on Monday that the government had introduced a “bespoke humanitarian route” for people fleeing the Russian invasion in Ukraine, saying it would allow an additional 100,000 Ukrainians to seek sanctuary in the UK.
However, it later emerged that this does not go beyond the easing of rules for a limited pool of family members of UK residents, which was announced over the weekend and has already been branded a “plaster for an open wound”.
Charities criticised the government’s failure to do as the EU has done and waive all visa rules for refugees fleeing Ukraine, which Ms Patel insisted would undermine “the strongest security advice”. Lawyers said they were sceptical about the claims that 100,000 people would be helped under her changes.
Shadow immigration minister Yvette Cooper accused the home secretary of “complete confusion” around what is being offered to Ukrainian refugees, asking her in the House of Commons: “How on earth is the home secretary so unprepared for something she’s been warning about for weeks?”
More than 500,000 people have already fled Ukraine since the beginning of the invasion, and the UN estimates that this figure could reach 4 million.
Temporary visa concessions announced by the Home Office on Sunday mean that certain family members of British nationals who do not meet the usual eligibility criteria but pass security checks may be granted permission to enter the UK outside the rules for 12 months.
However, this applies to spouses, the parents of children under 18, children under 18 and close relatives requiring care - excluding many relatives including parents, adult children, siblings.
Immigration barrister Colin Yeo told The Independent he was “sceptical” about Ms Patel’s claim that the concessions would help 100,000 Ukrainians.
“There aren’t many Ukrainians in the UK so I can’t see how there are going to be 100,000 eligible family members,” he said, adding: “The contrast with the simple generosity shown by the EU seems quite marked.”
A poll by YouGov last week found almost two-thirds of British people would support the introduction of a resettlement scheme for those fleeing Ukraine. Unfortunately, the Tories are not listening, preferring instead to maintain their fortress Britain approach, in defiance of our international obligations.
