Greece: Migrant and Refugee Support

Baroness Sheehan Excerpts

Wednesday 17th January 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bates]

In all these things, we work through our European partners to address these situations and they have been very involved. We also have people from the Home Office in the UK seconded on to the islands. They are acting as camp security and liaison managers, and helping to identify and register young people. But exactly those types of efforts are part of the prioritisation that I referred to in reply to the noble Lord, Lord Hylton, by ensuring that winter accommodation and heating are there for them now. The number currently on the islands is 14,000 and there are 48,000 on the mainland; that is 62,000 people in this position and we need real urgency to improve the humanitarian response.

[Baroness Sheehan (LD)]

My Lords, does the Minister agree that the rumour that the Home Office has closed the Dubs scheme is given credence by the fact that the majority of Dubs places remain unfilled, yet just one lone and very traumatised child has been transferred to the UK from Greece, and that only after litigation? If he does not agree, can he say how many lone children we can expect to arrive within the next six months under the Dubs scheme?

[Lord Bates]

The scheme to which the noble Baroness refers under Section 67 of the Immigration Act, after an amendment, ably proposed by the noble Lord, Lord Dubs, requires other member countries to make referrals to us. What has been established under it is a facility for 480 children to come to this country. Two hundred have already come, although I accept that they were categorised under the 900 as part of the agreement with France for the clearance of the site referred to as the Jungle. But that scheme remains open and is an important factor, along with four or five other schemes that are helping the most vulnerable people to get access to the help and security they need.