Syria Crisis: UK Response — House of Commons, 2016-02-08
Topic: Immigration
Diane Julie Abbott (Labour, Centre-left): The Syrian crisis is the most pressing humanitarian challenge facing us at this time, and the Government are to be commended on co-hosting an important conference that has raised more than $10 billion for Syrian refugees. They are also to be commended on doubling our own commitment to more than £2.3 billion. The emphasis on education and jobs is entirely correct: we cannot allow a whole generation of Syrian children to be lost The Secretary of State will be aware, however, of the report by Concern Worldwide that reveals that a third of the funds pledged to Syria in 2015 had not been confirmed by December of that year. Can she say whether all the money pledged in 2015 has now been confirmed, and does she appreciate the hopes of the entire House that she will get other countries not just to match our generosity but to hand the money over? The wholly commendable efforts on Syrian refugees in the region belie the Government’s wilful myopia on the plight of more than half a million Syrian refugees here in Europe. It is true that the majority of Syrian refugees are in the region, and the situation continues to worsen. We all saw the television pictures at the weekend of tens of thousands of terrified Syrians waiting at the border with Turkey in response to Assad’s bombardment of Aleppo, but will the Secretary of State explain how much longer this country and the EU can expect Turkey to keep its border with Syrian open while at the same time we want to prevent refugees from transiting to western Europe The funds raised by the conference are vital, but it is vital, too, that this country shows willingness to take its fair share of refugees, including Syrian refugees. The UK has agreed to take, over five years, fewer refugees than Germany has taken in a month. The Opposition appreciate that this country has not signed up to Schengen, but does the Secretary of State acknowledge that the fact that we are not signatories to Schengen does not remove the moral responsibility that falls on us as part of the European family of nations, and does she accept that many people are surprised and disappointed that the Government have rejected the Save the Children campaign to take in just 3,000 child refugees The Secretary of State may well wish that these children had stayed in the region, but the direction in which the children chose to flee does not make them any less vulnerable. These children may not be in the part of the world she might prefer them to be in, but they are still lone children at risk of abuse, sex-trafficking and worse. She cannot behave as if there are two classes of Syrian child refugee: one set who stay in the region, whom she is prepared to help, but another class who have travelled to Europe on whom she turns her back The Secretary of State will have heard reports of the German Chancellor’s speech in Turkey today. Does she agree with Angela Merkel that the ultimate solution to the migrant crisis is safe and legal pathways for refugees? On the political process, I am glad to say that the Opposition support calls on all sides in the Syrian civil war to take steps to move towards sustainable peace negotiations. In particular, Russia must use its influence on the Assad regime. We entirely agree that it is unacceptable and illegal to use siege, starvation and the blockage of humanitarian aid as a weapon of war. We welcome the steps taken to freeze Daesh assets and other restrictive measures, for which my right hon. Friend the Leader of the Opposition has called for some time All Syrian refugees want to return home. Immigrants and refugees, whether they go home or not, never lose that hope in their heart that they will return to the country in which they were born. But whether the Secretary of State would prefer it or not, there are half a million Syrian refugees here in western Europe. Together with my right hon. Friend the Leader of the Opposition, I visited the camp in Calais and met very many Syrian refugees there, many of whom, it seemed to us, had a legal right to come to this country, and all of whom were living in appalling conditions When the caravan of these international events has moved on, there will still be thousands of Syrians and other refugees, including an increasing proportion of women and children, living in appalling conditions in Europe, frightened, terrorised and at the mercy of people traffickers. We may all wish that they had not listened to the people traffickers, but this Government should be doing more not just for Syrian refugees in the region, but for the very many Syrian refugees here in western Europe.