Afghan resettlement places filled by those already in UK

More than 6,500 Afghans already in the UK are being diverted to a refugee scheme launched last month to resettle those fleeing the Taliban.

After the militants’ takeover in August last year, Britain promised to resettle 20,000 refugees, with a commitment to bring 5,000 of them in the first year as part of the Afghanistan citizens resettlement scheme.

Britain flew out 15,000 Afghans in the Operation Pitting evacuation under a separate programme, the Afghan relocations and assistance policy, for those in danger of Taliban reprisals because of their association with Britain’s military campaign.

Victoria Atkins, minister for Afghan resettlement, has revealed that 6,500 of them have been transferred to the new scheme. Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, a Foreign Office minister, suggested in the Lords last week that the number was “nearer 7,000”.

The reallocation means that the places for the first year of the scheme have been filled entirely with people already in the UK.

Atkins defended the move, attributing it to the larger-than-expected number of people airlifted during Operation Pitting. The Home Office pointed to a statement Atkins gave MPs in September that revealed some of those evacuated did not meet the criteria for the relocations policy and would be transferred to the new scheme when it was launched.

But it was understood to apply only to a small fraction of the 15,000 people evacuated, such as female judges and politicians.

Writing in answer to a parliamentary question by Anneliese Dodds, the Labour Party chairwoman, Atkins said: “The Afghan citizens resettlement scheme (ACRS) will prioritise those who have assisted UK efforts in Afghanistan and stood up for UK values such as democracy, women’s rights, freedom of speech and rule of law; and vulnerable people such as women and girls at risk, and members of minority groups (including ethnic/religious minorities and LGBT+).

“Due to the success of the evacuation in unprecedented circumstances, there are around 6,500 people in the UK who have been brought to safety during and after the evacuation who are eligible for the ACRS.”

Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, accused ministers of breaking their pledge to Afghans fleeing the Taliban.

“People have been expecting the ACRS to open for five months but there is still no sign of more people being helped, despite the fact that many who worked for and helped our armed forces were left behind and the humanitarian crisis is escalating,” she said.

Home Office sources have accused Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, of forcing the government to scale down its commitment to resettling refugees because of the “huge cost” of housing them.

A minister in a different department said last month: “The Treasury won the argument, and that means there’ll be fewer refugees resettled.”

Enver Solomon, chief executive of the Refugee Council, said: “We are very concerned the target of supporting up to 20,000 people through the resettlement scheme announced in January simply doesn’t go far enough.”

He added: “In reality there are many more Afghans in great need who will not be eligible for the scheme, leaving them desperately unsafe and with no choice but to embark on dangerous journeys, exploited by people smugglers, to find safety.”

Alistair Carmichael, the Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, accused ministers of “trying to fiddle the figures”.

He said: “The truth is clear: they are breaking their promise and turning their backs on vulnerable Afghan refugees fleeing the Taliban.”

The Treasury declined to comment.