10,000 Ukrainian refugees arrive in the UK in a week

Numbers show that the number of refugees arriving in the UK under the Ukrainian visa system has increased by more than 10,000 in just one week.

As of Tuesday, about 37,400 people had arrived in the UK under the Ukrainian visa system, according to government figures released on Friday.

This has increased from 27,100 by Monday, April 25th.

The latest arrivals include 19,500 under the Homes for Ukraine sponsorship scheme. This is a three-quarter increase from last week’s 11,100.

And 16,000 to 17,900 arrived under the family system.

Ukrainian housing plans, in particular, face widespread criticism over the length of time it takes refugees to obtain visas and come to the UK.

The latest figures show that more and more people are arriving in the UK with visas, but the majority (about 6 out of 10) haven’t arrived yet.

PA news agencies report multiple cases where families are unable to travel to the UK because the entire family has not received a letter or visa travel permit.

Government officials believe that some people have the option of coming to the UK because they have applied for a visa, but because they are staying near Ukraine, they can return home sooner or have changed their minds.

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Boris Johnson acknowledged that Britain could have responded more quickly in helping Ukrainian refugees, but told ITV’s Good Morning Britain that a “majority” would come to Britain. ..

Also this week, a group of potential hosts threatened the government by taking legal action on behalf of hundreds of refugees waiting for visas since March.

The latest figures show that 33% of people visa-granted under the Homes for Ukraine scheme have traveled to the UK from about one-fifth last week.

And 49.3% of those who have visas under the family system arrived, up from 45.8%.

By Thursday, approximately 125,100 visa applications had been submitted and 95,500 had been issued.

This includes 44,200 applications under the family system (of which 36,300 visas are granted) and 80,900 applications under the sponsorship system (of which 59,100 visas are granted).

The figures show that more than three-quarters of visa applications are allowed under both schemes.

This includes 82.1 percent of family-based applications and 73 percent of Ukrainian applications for housing.

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