The situation with refugees and migrants across the world is
a complex issue and there are no quick and easy answers. Recent news has been
focused on Syria and the number of people fleeing the civil war and atrocities
by the Assad regime and ISIS.
The UK is playing a major part in the humanitarian relief
efforts in the region. We are spending a billion pounds supporting the refugee
camps – the 2nd highest contributors to the crisis behind only the
USA. We have also been taking genuine refugees from the camps in the area – a
policy that we will continue. I am pleased that the Prime Minister confirmed
this week that the UK will now be taking a further 20,000 Syrian refugees as
well as increasing the aid we give to the area.
However, I do also agree with the Prime Minister that the
answer is not to simply open our borders and encourage people to come to
Europe. It could be argued that by giving out this message the German position
has exacerbated the issue not helped it. If we encourage people to leave the safety
of the camps in places such as Turkey we are in fact playing into the hands of
the people traffickers who charge desperate people to transport them to Europe.
Let us remember that the poor boy whose body was pictured on
the beach died whilst his family were trying to leave Turkey. It is also worth
noting that those that are able to make the journey to Europe tend to be the
younger, stronger and wealthier; they have the physical and financial resources
to make the journey. Those in most need are often those who remain in the camps;
they are too weak, elderly or sick to travel and cannot afford to pay the cost
of the journey.
For these reasons I believe that the right policy is to take
refugees from the camps rather than encourage people to travel to our borders.
I am also pleased that the Chancellor has confirmed that we
will be using our Overseas Aid Budget in order to cover the cost of housing and
caring for the refugees in our country. I believe this is an appropriate use of
this budget. I will continue to support this policy in order to ensure that
local services in the areas that accept refugees continue to be funded and
undue pressure is not put on services to the detriment of local people.
None of these measures are a long-term solution. We need to
address the cause of the Syrian refugee crisis. We need to work towards
returning Syrian to a safe and stable country where its citizens can live
without fear of oppression and harm. I believe we are now at a point where all
options should be considered including creating ‘safe zones’ within Syria. Any long-term
answer is likely to include sending troops into the country. Just dropping
bombs, no matter how targeted will not achieve the required outcomes.
The UK, as part of a joint coalition with other nations,
needs to consider what action needs to be taken to bring about the changes
needed in Syria for the sake of its citizens.
