UK Parliament / Open data

Topical Questions

Oral answer to question provided on Monday, 7 March 2022 in the House of Commons, by Michael Gove (Conservative).

Answer

I agree with the hon. Lady that it is vital to provide the fastest and safest route for those fleeing persecution and we are working with our partners on the ground in Poland and elsewhere to do just that. We are processing more than 14,000 applications under the family scheme at the moment. Of course, as my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary outlined last week, that scheme has been significantly expanded. There is an existing community sponsorship scheme and the details are available on gov.uk for those who wish to help through it, but we are expanding it and more details will be announced later today and later this week.

This is an answer to the Topical question asked on Monday, 7 March 2022 by Lisa Nandy (Labour).

Question

It is three months since Russian troops massed at the Ukraine border and not a single detail has been published about the community sponsorship scheme that the Secretary of State is supposedly leading. We stand alone among European countries in insisting on a visa that takes months while desperate people are being turned back at Calais. Nearly 2 million people have fled Ukraine and only 50 visas have been granted. Will he really ask desperate people to wait months for his Department to get its act together or will he pick up the phone to the Home Secretary, cut out the bureaucracy and help people now?

About this oral answer to question

Reference

710 c17 

Session

2021-22

Chamber / Committee

House of Commons chamber
Refugees: Ukraine
Monday, 14 March 2022
Written questions
House of Commons
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