OAPs stuck in travel red tape fiasco
An elderly Ukrainian couple trying to reach family in Scotland have been left stranded in Hungary without visas.
Viacheslav and Zhanna Malyna fled nightly Russian shelling in Kharkiv last Saturday and travelled to Budapest, where they hoped to get permission to enter the UK.
But the traumatised pensioners, who are in their 80s, have been told the next appointment to make a travel application is almost two weeks away on March 23.
Son-in-law Geoff White, from Bridge of Weir in Renfrewshire, has told how his Ukrainian wife Anna has travelled to Hungary to be with her mum and dad.
He said: “They are still in shock – they left their home with just the clothes they’re wearing and they don’t know when, if ever, it will be safe to go back.
“They live in a tower block and had to move to the basement at a friend’s home when the bombing began. They then travelled to Hungary in the hope of moving on from there to Scotland.”
Kharkiv has been decimated by airstrikes and shelling. Dozens of civilians have been killed and hundreds injured.
Chemical engineer Geoff said: “We have a spare room and obviously just want to get them safely over here. It is not acceptable that the UK Government is dragging its heels on this and putting obstacles in the way of people.
“We are dealing with a humanitarian crisis – this is not a normal situation and the normal rules can’t apply.”
The family were given hope after Inverclyde MP Ronnie Cowan grilled Boris Johnson on the case in parliament.
The PM has been under increasing pressure to address bureaucratic delays facing Ukrainians with family ties trying to reach the UK.
Cowan said: “Viacheslav and Zhanna are elderly, infirm and had already undergone a perilous journey to get to Hungary.
“The very least the UK Government can do is waive existing visa rules to speed up the process and allow these families to be reunited.”