Posted on 09/01/2025 1:21:54 PM PDT by MinorityRepublican
The government is temporarily suspending new applications for a scheme allowing refugees to bring their family members to the UK.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the move, in force from this week, would mean refugees face the same restrictions as other migrants hoping to bring family to join them in the UK.
This generally means someone must earn at least £29,000 a year and provide suitable accommodation, while their family member may need to demonstrate a basic level of English.
Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp said "tweaking the family reunion rules are not enough" to deal with the scale of the UK's "border security crisis".
On Monday, Cooper announced the government would temporarily suspend new applications under the existing dedicated refugee family reunion route that allows those granted asylum in the UK to bring their family with "no conditions".
Cooper said the rules "were designed many years ago to help families separated by war, conflict and persecution" but are now out of kilter with the UK's neighbours and restrictions are needed.
European countries like Denmark and Switzerland make refugees wait two years before applying to reunite with family, giving them time to find work and housing to support loved ones when they arrive, Cooper said.
In contrast, in the UK "those applications come in on average in around a month", often before the refugee even leaves asylum housing, she said.
As a result, Cooper said many refugee families are applying to councils for help to stop them falling into homelessness - making up more than a quarter of homelessness cases in some local authorities.
Refugees applying to bring family members to the UK will be covered by regular immigration rules, which set several restrictions.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
Goodness, gracious. It would be terrible for a sovereign nation to allow a border security crisis. I can't imagine such a thing. /S
🤪😜🤔
https://t.co/7kgxSja5sF— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 1, 2025
Marry your cousins and everyone is a relative.
“suspends refugee family reunion applications”
Suspends, that’s a good one. This is Starmer and Labour trying to put out a raging inferno with a squirt gun.
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