‘Extremists are in the region’ Priti Patel blasts back at SNP jibing over Ukraine refugees
Ukraine: UK to allow extra 100,000 people in says Patel
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Priti Patel announced the UK will change its entry policies to ensure more refugees from Ukraine are able to come into the country. The Home Secretary said the Government is seeking to make it easier for Ukrainian nationals with family already in the UK to reunite with them and said those in the country working in some sectors will have their visa extended at least up until December. Ms Patel shot down attempts from the SNP benches to disrupt her speech with a stern look as she discussed the presence of “extremists” in Ukraine threatening citizens.
She said: “I’ll continue and perhaps the Opposite Party member…I’ll take their questions later on.
“But I want to emphasise the seriousness of the security situation on the ground, and that’s not something that can be discounted lightly at all.
“Extremists are on the ground and in the region, too.
“I’m sure if the party opposite wanted a security briefing from our colleague, we’ll happily provide one but at the same time I’m very skeptical of how they treat and respect security advice.”
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Ms Patel insisted the UK cannot waive visas for people fleeing Ukraine as the UK must still protect its national security.
The Home Secretary responded to calls for visa waivers by telling MPs that “Russian troops are seeking to infiltrate and merge with Ukrainian forces” and that there are “extremists on the ground” in Ukraine.
She added: “Given this and also Putin’s willingness to do violence on British soil, and in keeping with our approach which we have retained consistently throughout all emergency evacuations including in Afghanistan, we cannot suspend any security or biometric checks on people we welcome to our country.
“We have a collective duty to keep the British people safe and this approach is based on the strongest security advice.”
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Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper asked several questions in a bid to establish how many people the changes will help, and sought assurances that nobody will have to pay if they are seeking sanctuary from Ukraine.
She added: “Does the sponsoring family member have to be British or have to have indefinite leave to remain? What about Ukrainians here on work visas, on study visas, who have come maybe as lorry drivers or on visitor visas?
“Surely she is not expecting to turn their families away? When people are fleeing Russian authoritarianism and war, I assume she will not be applying a test based on which bureaucratic box UK residents tick?
“Can she make a simple commitment now that family members from Ukraine who are fleeing persecution are all welcome here in the UK – no matter what visa their family member here in the UK has, that we will give them sanctuary?”
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