The British government is now considering using the hospitality and offers of Britons to resettle non-Ukrainian refugees.
It comes after much criticism from neighboring nations, which noted that the U.K. had been allowing very few refugees to enter its borders. Moreover, government restrictions made the process to seek asylum too difficult. Over three million people have fled Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict.
In contrast to the U.K., the European Union (EU) immediately waived visa requirements for the war-torn country. Poland, a next-door neighbor to Ukraine, has already taken in nearly two million Ukrainians. Romania housed half a million. Ireland, which has less than 10 percent of the U.K.'s population, offered refuge to 6,500 Ukrainians.
Britain previously left the EU to set its own immigration policies. However, it became clear that the public was not going to stand for the mean-spiritedness of the British government's response, which led to the government introducing the additional resettlement routes such as "Homes for Ukraine." The scheme allowed those with no family members to come, so long as they are sponsored by a named individual who will house them for at least six months, with each household receiving £350 ($461.4) per month for doing so.
Nick Beever, one of the Britons ready to take part in the program to house Ukrainian refugees, said he and his wife were hoping to have one or two refugees staying with them. "Helping people is one of those duties you have as a member of society, as a human being," he said.
While Britons are ready to offer help, there had already been reports of their generosity being abused. After seeing over 150,000 members of the public offering to take in Ukrainian refugees, ministers are now looking into using the same scheme to resettle thousands of Afghans, many of whom have been living in hotels at the expense of U.K. taxpayers.
With the government struggling to persuade local authorities to house Afghans, senior government sources described the idea of expanding the Ukraine-based scheme as a "good idea." (Related: Russian ambassador to the UN claims his country does not plan to occupy Ukraine.)
On March 15, more than 400 individuals crossed the English Channel in small boats – the highest number so far this year. There had been a total of over 2,600 who have crossed since the beginning of 2022. Comparatively, there had been 28,526 people who crossed the Channel in small boats from France, over 20,000 more compared to 2020.
Home Secretary Priti Patel noted that 70 percent of migrants who entered the U.K. from France are "not genuine asylum seekers." They're mostly made up of "single men" who are effectively economic migrants. Recent Home Office figures showed that the housing asylum seekers were costing the country around £5 million ($6.6 million) every day.
Britain cautious about taking in immigrants
The British immigration issue remains a key concern among the public since the end of World War II. Back then, the nation opened its doors to immigration from the Commonwealth of Nations. However, there had been security concerns as a result of the open border policies. (Related: Western powers warned of global collapse if they interfere with Russia's invasion of Ukraine.)
For instance, it was found in 2018 that the Manchester Arena bomber, Salman Abedi, was rescued by the Navy from war-torn Libya just three years before he attacked the indoor arena – killing 22 and injuring hundreds at a concert.
Investigations revealed that Abedi spent years on housing estates in Manchester, fraternizing with groups of young radicalized men.
Individuals who were on the "no-fly" lists were also found to have been flown into the U.K. during the failed Afghanistan evacuation of 2021, despite the government claiming to have looked at the cases, saying that one of the men questioned was not a "person of interest."
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Watch the video below discussing what could possibly go wrong on taking in Ukrainian refugees.
This video is from the Kim Osbøl - Copenhagen Denmark channel on Brighteon.com.
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