Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will recognise at-risk cultural heritage workers from Afghanistan who have been threatened for their work with international bodies under her Department's refugee programme; and whether those individuals need to be outside of Afghanistan to be processed for re-settlement in the UK.

The Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme will provide up to 20,000 women, children and others at risk with a safe and legal route to resettle in the UK.

The scheme 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+).

Those we resettle will be prioritised according to risk and protection need. Further details on referral for resettlement can be found in the recent statement to Parliament on 6 January: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/oral-statement-on-the-afghan-citizens-resettlement-scheme

The capacity of the UK to resettle people is not unlimited, and therefore difficult decisions about who will be prioritised for resettlement will have to be made.

The UK is committed to working with our international partners to protect and promote the human rights of those in Afghanistan including cultural heritage workers, and encourage the international community to share our long-term interest in providing homes for those whose lives are at risk in Afghanistan.