A minister has admitted the government could have done some things “differently” on the second anniversary of the fall of Kabul to the extremist group. Afghan refugees being evacuated from Kabul on a UK aircraft two years ago. Many Afghan families have been let down by the UK government, a think tank has said, as it called for lessons to be learned after a number of failures.
More In Common, a think tank founded after the murder of Labour MP Jo Cox, recognised some success at resettling thousands of refugees following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan two years ago today but said there had been failings in key areas such as housing and accommodation, funding and integration of Afghans into local communities. Veterans minister Johnny Mercer has said he recognises that some Afghan refugees have had a “very difficult experience” and admitted that some things “could have been done differently”.
In 2021, the government promised a “significant cross-government effort”, nicknamed “Operation Warm Welcome”, to “ensure Afghans arriving in the UK receive the vital support they need to rebuild their lives, find work, pursue education and integrate into their local communities”. While thousands have since moved into settled accommodation, many remain in hotels and were given a deadline by the government of the end of August to find alternative housing, prompting warnings of homelessness.
The More In Common report, published today, said the programme “has not lived up to its potential”, and added: “The British public’s generosity of spirit towards Afghan refugees has not been met by what has so far been delivered by local and national government. “The result is that many Afghan families have been let down.”
More In Common detailed research conducted with a small group of refugees, and found “failures of communication with local authorities and the Home Office on housing, the stress and anxiety of trying to ‘find your own accommodation’, the repeated rejection of applications, and unsuitable offers of accommodation being made – either not taking into account job prospects or in areas hundreds of miles away”.
More In Common said its survey of 132 Afghans in the UK suggested the majority prioritised housing, financial support and finding a job when asked what extra support they needed, and added that local authorities received the brunt of the criticism. “Many refugees’ offers for housing and jobs fell through because local authorities were too slow to react and not agile enough in finding solutions to complex challenges,” the report said.
It added that local authorities “had no incentive to act quickly on finding permanent accommodation for Afghans – partly because the government funding model was too slow to give them the tools they needed, and partly because the Home Office was paying for temporary accommodation up until an Afghan refugee presents as homeless as which point the local authority would be liable”.