Refugees: the UK opens its doors
The British public has shown a “remarkable” willingness to take Ukrainian refugees into their homes, said Andrew Grice in
The Independent – more than 150,000 people have registered with the Homes for Ukraine scheme. Their generosity has made the Government’s initially “grudging reaction to the migration crisis” look badly out of touch. The new policy, directed by Michael Gove, allows UK residents to put up refugees at home or in another property, for a minimum of six months. For now, potential hosts must themselves find the Ukrainian individual or family they wish to sponsor, and can then apply for a visa on their behalf. Politicians and celebrities from Keir Starmer and Matt Hancock to Gary Lineker and Benedict Cumberbatch have promised to sign up, said Jenny Hjul on Reaction. “To all the above, whether trying to set an example, jumping on the benevolence bandwagon, or truly overflowing with human kindness, I would say bravo.”
The challenge of finding a suitable Ukrainian has sparked a social media frenzy, said Charles Hymas in The Daily Telegraph. Refugees seeking hosts have received “up to 300 posts each” as Britons vied to “outbid each other”, trumpeting the benefits of their houses, gardens and local amenities. It is worrying that there’s no “formal central system” to match hosts and refugees, said Hannah Summers in The Observer: one rights campaigner described it as being run “like Tinder”. Placing Ukranians in family homes will help settle them into communities, said Sonia Sodha in the same paper. But asking women and children to seek help from strangers risks them falling into the hands of sex traffickers, or being used as forced labour. The Scottish and Welsh governments are minimising these dangers by acting as a back-up “super-sponsor” for refugees. That’s not the case in England, unfortunately; newcomers should have a “case manager” who can intervene “at the first signs of exploitation”.
As we open our family homes to Ukrainians, we should spare a thought for the “forgotten” refugees out in the cold, said Emily Dugan and Hugo Daniel in The Sunday Times. Some 11,500 Afghans evacuated from Kabul in August remain stuck “in limbo” in hotels, awaiting permanent accommodation. That’s why we should extend this “uniquely Conservative” scheme, which helps both refugees and taxpayers, said Tom Harwood in the New Statesman. Why not give every Brit who offered space for a Ukrainian “the option of housing an Afghan refugee instead?” That would really signal “Global Britain’s generosity at times of crisis”.