Refugee family law takes big step forward
SNP MP’S bill to let child refugees bring parents to UK wins cross-party backing
Charities and campaign groups have hailed a “glimmer of hope” for refugees after an SNP MP’S bid to allow divided families to be reunited in the UK cleared its first parliamentary hurdle.
The Refugees (Family Reunion) Bill put forward by Na h-eileanan an Iar MP Angus Macneil won crossparty backing from 129 MPS, meaning it will get a second Commons reading and could become law.
If passed, the private members’ bill would allow a wider range of family members to be reunited with refugees already living in the UK, and give them financial support to take claims to court.
Currently, UK government rules prevent refugees in Britain from being reunited with anyone other than their partner or children under 18.
Child refugees who arrive in the UK alone are also unable to bring their parents to join them under the current rules.
The restrictions are among the toughest in the EU. The UK government has said it does not want to take action that could encourage more children to a make a dangerous journey across Europe alone.
Mr Macneil said: “Today marks a welcome step forward for many refugees in the UK who are desperate to be reunited with their loved ones. It’s clear that this issue isn’t about party politics, it’s about doing the right thing and it was pretty obvious to all of us that families belong together and that children belong with their parents.
“I hope that ministers come to the same compassionate conclusion: they change their mind and alter the rules – putting an end to the misery of refugee families with the stroke of a pen.”
During debate in the Commons, Conservative MP Ranil Jayawardena was heckled to “sit down” as he attempted to use up the limited time for debate with a 30-minute speech. MPS from across the House shouted “disgraceful” and “shame” as Mr Jayawardena warned that letting in too many migrants had resulted in the terrorist attack in Berlin in 2016 and sexual assaults across Germany on New Year’s Eve in 2015.
The campaign is backed by the Refugee Council, Oxfam, the British Red Cross, the UNHCR and Amnesty International, as well as celebrities including Patrick Stewart, Peter Capaldi, Vivienne Westwood, Anish Kapoor, Alan Cumming, David Morrissey and Neil Gaiman.
Refugee Council chief executive Maurice Wren said current rules “leave refugees isolated, traumatised and alone in the UK, knowing that the people they love still face untold dangers in other countries. It’s vital that MPS stand up for refugee families by supporting this Bill.”
Amnesty International UK director Kate Allen said hundreds of child refugees arriving in the UK alone “face a multitude of new struggles - a new language and culture as well as the psychological fallout from incredibly traumatic experiences back in their home country. MPS voting in favour of the Bill today is a significant step towards reuniting vulnerable children with their families.”