Wills and Kate f ly into Canada – and right into a refugees row
THE Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will today wade into one of the most controversial political debates of current times – how to solve the Syrian migrant crisis.
The Royal couple arrived in Canada yesterday in a private jet, touching down in British Columbia for their first foreign tour with both Prince George, three, and Princess Charlotte, 16 months.
Kate and William will visit a new 138-bed immigration Welcome Centre in Vancouver which boasts ‘a new international standard in service delivery for immigrants and refugees’.
Among those they are expected to meet are Ahman Al Krad and his wife Doaa, who arrived in Canada from Dara’a, a town in SouthWest Syria, with their children Nasser, five, Ranem, four, and sixmonth-old Muneer. They fled Syria for Jordan shortly after the start of the war and were flown to Canada by the UN.
Speaking through a translator, Mr Al Krad told The Mail on Sunday that he wanted to ask Prince William if Britain would do more to support refugees and bring
WILLIAM and Kate are taking a relatively lean team of 12 staff with them. There are four press officers, three private secretaries, a tour secretary, an operations manager, Kate’s personal assistant and stylist Natasha Archer, nanny Maria Borrallo, and Kate’s hairdresser Amanda Cook Tucker. Unusually, the Duke is travelling without his political adviser, Sir David Manning, and has written all his speeches himself.
a halt to the war. ‘I want to tell William that countries like Britain and Germany and all the European countries should treat us like we have been treated in Canada. I want to show the couple that we Syrians are good human beings.
‘I would want to say to the Royal couple that they need to take the message home with them. I wish they would continue to support Syrians in the crisis. We need help to solve this conflict.
‘It was terrifying in Syria. We started lying to protect the children, telling them the loud bangs of gun shots and bombs were just fireworks.
‘Distracting them from the war was the only way we could get them to go to sleep.’
The chief executive of the immigration centre, Patricia Woroch, said refugees had attended etiquette classes to prepare for the Royal visit. She said: ‘We covered how to dress appropriately, how to cover topics without becoming overly emotional or political. We’re sharing information very clearly but we’re hoping not to create any awkward moments.’
Canada’s Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, who has helped oversee the eight-day itinerary, is keen for the couple to see how Canada is addressing the crisis.
The Liberal leader pledged to rehouse and relocate some 25,000 migrants from Syria and elsewhere – a move that drew criticism from the country’s Conservative party for being too hasty and ill-planned.
Canada has since accepted more than 30,000 refugees, with more families settling each month.
Prince Charles met Syrian refugees earlier this year during a trip to Wales to see work carried out by the British Red Cross.
Today’s engagement, however, will be the first time the Duke and Duchess have met with refugees and aides say the Royal couple are keen to learn about the plight of families.