DID Press: UK is set to reopen its refugee resettlement programme, with vulnerable Afghan women and girls and Palestinian refugees among those expected to receive priority, according to reports citing Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood.
Under the plan, hundreds of refugees are expected to arrive initially through UK resettlement and community sponsorship routes, with the number potentially rising to several thousand. Those accepted would be placed on a five-year pathway toward permanent residence.
Most refugees would be referred by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), while Palestinian refugees would be referred through a dedicated refugee assistance project. The reopened scheme follows a period in which the UK Resettlement Scheme had stopped accepting new referrals.
The UK government’s existing resettlement framework provides a safe and legal route for vulnerable refugees and includes support from local authorities and community sponsors for up to five years.
However, charities and migration experts have questioned whether the limited scale of the programme will have a significant impact on irregular migration across the English Channel. The International Rescue Committee UK said the announcement represents an important expansion of safe routes but called for greater scale and clarity around implementation.