‘False hope’: Refugee charity blasts UK’s ‘Homes for Ukraine’ scheme

A UK-based humanitarian group has castigated the British government for being unsupportive of Ukrainian refugees, almost a fortnight after a government scheme was launched to help them.

The Head of Positive Action in Housing, Robina Qureshi, said the scheme of ‘Homes for Ukraine’ had given “false hope” to the fleeing refugees and amounted to a “gimmick.”

The much-hyped scheme was launched by the British government earlier this month, allowing individuals, charities, community groups, and businesses to sponsor Ukrainian refugees and bring them into the UK.

UK’s Housing and Communities Secretary, Michael Gove, after launching the scheme on March 14, said there was no limit for the number of Ukrainian refugees planning to come to the UK.

However, the scheme has failed to convince charity groups and experts that it is designed to help the vulnerable refugees fleeing the raging conflict in their home country.

Qureshi was quoted as saying by the Guardian that the scheme had led to refugees turning to social media in desperation to seek sponsors, and those seeking help were prone to be exploited by human traffickers.

“The government made a fanfare of its Homes for Ukraine community sponsorship programme,” she asserted. “Michael Gove told parliament on 14 March that there was no limit on the numbers coming in. Yet none of the families we are supporting have yet got a visa to travel under the community sponsorship scheme and are still waiting.”

She said her charity had been helping 483 families, young people, and unaccompanied minors in the last week alone who needed a sponsor, adding that the firms involved in the scheme were “tortuous and confusing – with no guideline”.

Positive Action in Housing runs Room for Refugees, the country’s longest-running refugee-hosting programme, which began in 2002.

“Refugees are turning to wholly unsafe methods of getting here, meeting people in Facebook groups, on social media. And this government is responsible for giving people false hope and putting them further in the way of danger,” she was quoted as saying, questioning the rationale behind the scheme.

ME