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Labour urges Government to accept Syrian refugees

Labour has called on the Government to take in hundreds of Syrian refugees fleeing the fighting which has ravaged the Middle Eastern state for almost three years.

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In numbers: Britain's contribution to Syria aid

  • Britain's £500 million of official aid to Syria was the UK's largest ever response to a humanitarian crisis, the Home Office said.
  • The Government said that total almost equalled the amount given by the other 27 EU countries combined.
  • Some £217 million is being spent inside Syria and £236 million in neighbouring countries.
  • Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper said that Britain should join some 16 nations which have agreed to allow a total of more than 10,000 Syrians to move to their countries.
  • Australia is understood to be planning to take in 500 Syrians for permanent resettlement, Sweden 400, Germany will allow 5,000 temporary "humanitarian admissions" and France 500.
  • Only about 0.1% of Syrians displaced by the fighting have found refuge in the UK, the Refugee Council said.

Cooper: Govt cannot turn its back on Syrian refugees

We should be rightly proud of our humanitarian aid effort and the generosity of the British people.

But we should also do our part, alongside other countries within the UN's programme, to provide a safe haven for some of the most vulnerable Syrian refugees fleeing this murderous conflict.

The British Government cannot turn its back on these people. It is our moral duty to respond to the UN's call for help for Syrian refugees - just as our country has helped those fleeing persecution for hundreds of years.

– Yvette Cooper told The Independent

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Labour urges Government to accept Syrian refugees

Labour has urged the Government to take in hundreds of Syrian refugees fleeing the fighting which has ravaged the Middle Eastern country for three years.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper. Credit: Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire

The United Nations called on the international community to offer both humanitarian aid for refugees and resettlement opportunities outside the country.

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper is urging the Government to accept 400-500 Syrians, including torture victims, women and girls at high risk and people with family links to the UK.

But ministers insist that Britain can best help by providing funds to assist those affected by the long-running civil war both inside Syria and in neighbouring states like Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq.

Ms Cooper said that Britain should join some 16 nations, including the USA, France and Germany, which have agreed to allow a total of more than 10,000 Syrians to move to their countries.

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