Save the Children respond to Home Affairs Select Committee on Dubs child refugee scheme
George Graham, Director of Conflict and Humanitarian policy at Save the Children has commented on the Home Affairs Select Committee report.
Today’s report from the cross-party Home Affairs Select Committee is a further reminder that Parliament does not support the government’s decision to walk away from the Dubs amendment. Along with the British public, politicians from across the political spectrum want to do more for the most vulnerable children caught up in the refugee crisis.
We strongly support the Committee's recommendation for the government to urgently consult the Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner on the future of the Dubs Amendment. As we have argued time and time again, far from acting as a dangerous pull factor, when options for safe asylum are offered to children who’ve fled war and persecution - as they were during the closure of the Calais Jungle - fewer children arrive in the UK through spontaneous and dangerous means. Schemes like these offer a lifeline to children who are already in Europe, who are at serious risk of exploitation and abuse by criminal gangs, and could otherwise fall into the hands of traffickers.
Tomorrow [Tuesday] MPs will vote on an amendment that would force the government to secure more local authority capacity for these refugee children. Following the Committee's recommendation that the government do just this, we urge all parties to vote in favour of this amendment and provide children currently languishing in freezing camps in Italy and Greece with renewed hope.
Today’s report not only shows that there’s a consensus, both in politics and the public, that vulnerable children deserve better, it also sets out a clear roadmap for getting us there
