Roger calls on the Prime Minister to improve conditions for Syrian refugees in the UK
Posted by Roger Godsiff, MP for Birmingham, Hall Green, at 09:19, Sat 28 September 2013:
Roger has written to David Cameron to express his support for the UK’s £400 million aid programme to help Syrian refugees. Roger urged the Prime Minister to take all possible action to protect people who are caught in the horrors of the conflict, including by improving conditions for the small number of Syrian refugees living in the UK. Roger said: “I am pleased that the UK is the second largest donor of aid to Syrian refugees, but we should be doing more. I have written to the Prime Minister to urge him to do all that is possible to help people, including by improving conditions for the small number of Syrian refugees living in the UK.” Roger, who is Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Syria, continued: “I am very worried by reports from constituents that there are Syrian refugees living in extreme poverty in Birmingham. People who work in voluntary organisations such as food and clothing banks have informed me that they have helped Syrians whose only property is the clothes they are wearing, even though they have leave to remain and are entitled to Government support. I believe that this is because there is a gap, sometimes of several months, during which people have been granted refugee status but have not starting receiving support.” Roger has called on the Prime Minister to take action to ensure that refugees are not left destitute in a country which has acknowledged their right to support. He said: “It seems to me to be rather ridiculous, as well as cruel, for a country which provides such generous aid to Syrian people living elsewhere to condemn those few refugees who are in this country to destitution and want, even temporarily." Roger also urged the Prime Minister to make it easier for Syrian refugees to enter the UK. At the moment just 0.1% of the Syrians registered as refugees are in the UK, compared to the 97% being hosted by Egypt, Turkey, Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon, where one person in seven is now a Syrian refugee. Roger said: “I do not feel that it is fair to expect Syria’s neighbouring countries to shoulder so much of the burden of providing accommodation for refugees, nor is it fair to expose refugees to poor conditions which are exacerbated by overcrowding.”
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Posted by Colin, 09:35, Sat 28 September 2013: (Is this post abusive?) #
Britain is probably the world's most generous aid & charity donor & we accept more than our fair share of refugees. Many of these are economic migrants, in reality, & abuse our hospitality & laws, which were set up to aid those in real distress. The Labour party bankrupted our country, with its reckless borrowing & spending. Yet, here we have Mr. Godsiff, calling for an even greater burden on hard-pressed taxpayers. If he is so worried, let him accommodate some of the refugees himself. Or perhaps he could give up part of his generous MP's salary & expenses to help. Let the rest of us make up our own minds on what we can afford.
Posted by Mohammed Hemraj, 20:03, Sat 28 September 2013: (Is this post abusive?) #
There is a target of how much of GDP (Gross National Product) should a country spend to help other nations and this target is indeed very low so Britain should continue helping other nations. The country should learn not to make mistakes made in the past and should move forward. I am sure savings can be made by the government avoiding unnecessary wastage.