The Ministry of Defence has reiterated its commitment to resettling eligible Afghans who supported British forces, reaffirming that over 30,000 individuals have been relocated under government schemes.
During a Written Question session on Monday, 3 February 2025, Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative – Huntingdon) asked how many Afghans employed directly by British forces were brought to the UK under Operation Lazurite and its predecessor schemes.
Luke Pollard, Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Ministry of Defence, replied:
“Operation LAZURITE supports the Afghan Resettlement Programme announced in December. It is not in itself a scheme, rather a delivery component that assists parts of the end-to-end process of Afghan relocation and resettlement into the UK. Over 30,000 eligible Afghans have been relocated to the UK under resettlement schemes. It is not possible to provide a breakdown of relocation figures by job role, including those who worked directly for British Forces, at this time.”
In a separate Written Question on Friday, 31 January 2025, Calvin Bailey (Labour – Leyton and Wanstead) inquired about possible impacts on the UK’s Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) following changes in refugee policy in the United States.
Pollard stated that the UK’s ARAP eligibility criteria remain unaffected, adding:
“This Government is fully committed to delivering on the pledge made by Parliament to those in Afghanistan who are eligible to relocate and resettle, and we continue to welcome eligible Afghans and their families to the UK through our Afghan resettlement schemes.”
Pollard also noted that “Ministers in multiple government departments are engaging and working collaboratively to deliver a single pipeline for Afghan resettlement,” aiming for more efficiency and better outcomes.
According to his statement, around 90 eligible families have been arriving in the UK each month over the past year, though the government ultimately intends to close the UK Afghan resettlement schemes once they reach a defined endpoint.
That will go well.
Why does this continue? The war has been over for years. Reprisals in Afghanistan don’t seem to be occurring at any material rate. The Taliban government seems intent on fighting Pakistan now.
Ludicrous. No Afghan was forced to work for UK forces. Those who did knew the risks. Now we have 30000 more people from one of the most backward, violent countries on earth who will depend on taxpayer support for years. From Blair the warmongering liar through his equally useless successors, our leaders have ignored the interests of the British people, yet demand they fund their ill judged decisions.
Because we went in there and stured up a mess and then left. These people helped support the work that was done there and believed that we were there to build a new future for the country. Abandoning them is just wrong on any logic. Also that’s another 30,000 workers that are badly needed by our economy and so not all negative.
If the economy badly needs workers we could always encourage and train some of the millions of Brits we already have on benefits.
Just a thought.
Maybe there is a reason that many of them are on benefits ? Ever been Ill or Disabled ?
Ever given any thought that many (not all) on benefits are on benefits because they want to be? A friend of mine who did not want to be on benefits actually took a job that meant the family as a whole went backward. Retired as assistant manager (many years later) on a six figure sum. Alas, I think he is an outlier, as the statisticians call it. He took the job because it was a job, ignoring the fact that it paid less than the combined family benefits he was about to loose. Nowadays it’s why should I? Many can… Read more »
Who is “we” Steve?
The public never voted to have blood of British servicemen spilled in Afghanistan nor billions of pounds in taxes.
This is such a terrible idea on all counts and will cost the taxpayers billions in welfare.
Why assume welfare? Many of these were interpreters – they’ll speak decent enough English that they can work.
They’re not all going to come here and just sponge off benefits for life.
The public, tax payers were never asked. Stupid comment.
They had billions upin billions poured into Afghanistan and thousands of coalition and Afghan lives lost and they folded in two weeks with barely a fight.
Sorry, but they clearly did not care for a better and fairer Afghanistan.
they put their lives at risk for you, least you can do is help them after you’ve withdrawn
Exactly.
And if we don’t, why would anyone ever help us again in future?
So just use people up and spit them out when they’re no more use to us?
Utterly despicable.
These are people who signed up with us to make Afghanistan a better place. We failed at that. And people like you think we should just casually throw them to the wolves?
Even from a purely pragmatic point of view; why should any foreign national ever help us again in future if there’s no guarantee of our success and we just leave them to it if we fail and pull out? No locals would ever side with us again.
No, they did not do it to make Afghanistan a better place. That is a ludicrously naive view of the world. They did it for money and the power of being in proximity to American and UK forces. That is all, they were mercenaries and they were paid. Locals will always work with because of money, power, and advantage.
Oh I didn’t realise you could read minds, let alone so many people’s minds all at once.
Ever thought that perhaps you’re just too jaded? Or is this the Reform coming out: brown people bad, and those that aren’t are disposable?
As I said: if we throw them to the wolves then why would anyone ever help us in future?
As I said they will “help”, because they see money and power. They knew what they signed up for, if they had wished to avoid their fate they should have fought for a better nation. But as Afghanistan fell in a matter of weeks, they made their choice.
As for whether I can read minds? No, but I am not an infant. I have seen governments and armies try to fix this part of the world and its people for decades, it does not work nor will it ever work.
Exactly this. Biden was stupid enough to implement Trump’s plan to pull out of Afghanistan with virtually no planning or warning. Disgraceful. Such a waste. The Afghans have paid the greatest price both bin collateral damage in ops & then in allowing the Taliban to succeed in taking over. Plenty of retribution. Let’s not forget those who got left behind & faced the full anger of the Taliban.
I would fully endorse what you say. These people took money to perform a function and they are economic migrants. We should have stopped any of them coming to the UK.
How many interpreters, guides, and such were there?
This number must include families too, otherwise that’s quite a few per soldier we ever deployed there.
Probably but that seems fair, leaving their family behind to pay the price wouldn’t go down well with anyone. The taliban might be playing ball right now and not going after people supporting the allies but I think we all know that it won’t last.
Whats the definition of a ‘family’ in Afghan? Can guarantee its slightly bigger than we have here in UK 😉
Well, that was my thought. There is family, and family. But I see my scepticism has already been shot down.
Which is why I asked how many direct interpreters, guides, Afghan SF there were to get an idea? I don’t know.
Not Scepticism, Racist ism. You have a long history of this sort of veiled thinking out loud on here.
Don’t kid yourself Danny boy, some of us see right through you.
Well you’d be WRONG then, wouldn’t you, Jim.
Would you like to meet my Kenyan friend Erik?
You know F all about me, so take your fucking threats elsewhere, and I’ll report you to the site.
I don’t appreciate being slandered by racist allegations
FUCK OFF. Clear?
Daniele, In five deployments, I worked/had contact with a few dozen interpreters and guides. We never had any support staff who were Afghans. I worked with ANA and triples in those deployments. There were no more than two thousand triples in Afghanistsn who worked with British/NATO forces during the UK’s time there. Some of those I worked with were fantastic people. They genuinely didn’t want the Taliban to ever get back in power and wanted their country to move from living hundreds of yesrs in the past. Others were there for a paycheque. They didn’t care who was in power,… Read more »
DM, Many of those who chose to help the west, did so knowing their lives and those of their family might be in danger if the US ever pulled out. I guess that they and their families desired to be relocated after that.
It’s not hard to understand really is it ?
Is it hard to understand. No
And DID I raise an objection to helping? Did I?
No.
I questioned the NUMBER, families included, not the need or validity of helping those who are entitled…there is a big difference.
To me, the numbers quoted show that many are “jumping on the bandwagon” when not entitled, which happens time after time after time when migrants abuse our open hospitality.
“It’s not hard to understand really is it ?”
So, thanks for the barbed comment at the end there……….
You’re welcome.
Reported.
Hopefully this exchange will be removed soon.
If I had your full name, I’d sue you…..
Yes they include families and most of them are living on Military houses. Some even on Officers Married Quarters
Yes. At Garratts Hay for example, the St Com site that was once the junior school.
Daniele, there is an interdepartmental unit that investigates cases… exhaustively.
However, remember some of the first people from the sub-continent arrived, then brought their wives (plural), children, then the parents, then their brothers and sisters because they were dependent on the grandparents for childminding… Hope this helps.
The initial claim IS investigated, please rest assured.
Thanks.
Cue xenophobes who’ll complain about people who endangered their lives helping British forces now coming to live here…
“xenophobes?” Oh, you mean people who are concerned that the most backward of any people in any country have flooded the UK? My position is simple. If you have ever worked in support of the UK’s aims and made a meaningful contribution to our interests during the period of our deployment in country. You and your immediate family (wife/husband and children, or if not married their parents) should have the right to stay in the UK on a 10-year conditional Visa (renewed every 10 years). How many Afghans did you come across when you were deployed there Spock? If the… Read more »
Very well said. With details I could never add.
Well that pretty much covers it.
The most backwards people of any people in any country are Trump supporters, not these Afghan refugees. You think 30,000 Afghans in a population of 68,000,000 (0.04% of GBR population) is a “flood”. Seriously? You draw the line at the immediate family of the interpreter. Not that difficult if you think rationally. Obviously any Afghan who isn’t an Islamic fanatic is going to register a claim to get out of there, who can blame them? What sane person would want to live under the control of the Taliban. Which is exactly why have a vetting system to identify those who… Read more »
Well said “Ex-RoyalMarine”
I don’t live in Britain but I like to keep up to date with your military and politics… since Britain is one of America’s closest allies. We send our thoughts to you and your people.
Oh great, lucky us
30,000 more Doctors, Surgeons and Nuclear Physicists. What could possibly go wrong.
Oh lucky us, a racist.
For a so called democratic society that we supposedly live in, matters like this should be left to a majority vote on how many are allowed in. Absolute nonsense that a few government officials are allowed to decide on the numbers allowed to the detriment of the British public!
More than one on here, Lot’s of history from certain regulars over the years, not that they are blatantly racist though.
I’m severely-sceptical about importing 30,000 Afghan soldiers, interpreters, etc into the UK because they ‘helped us out’ in Afghanistan. I hope I’m wrong but it smacks of do-gooders giving-out free British citizenship to those poor Afghans, because ‘parliament voted for it’. parliamentarians would vote to sell their mother to a Saudi harem if it bought them some kudos in the Do-Gooder Weekly.
Snidey name-calling with no argument is a typical leftie tactic. Let’s hope all this do-gooding doesn’t affect your tax payments, queues at the doctors, school places, local housing, etc. Oh wait, that’s racist to claim they might isn’t it? Oh yes I forgot the population of the UK will peak at 100 million in 2050 so we’ll need more workers to keep the NHS running.
I’m severely-sceptical about importing 30,000 Afghan soldiers, interpreters, etc into the UK because they ‘helped us out’ in Afghanistan. I hope I’m wrong but it smacks of do-gooders giving-out free British citizenship to those poor Afghans, because ‘parliament voted for it’. parliamentarians would vote to sell their mother to a Saudi harem if it bought them some kudos in the Do-Gooder Weekly.
OK great, just what we need…..
Lot’s of abuse and threats here from one “Member”, Hope I didn’t touch a nerve, looks a bit butt hurt and ruffled. Lol.
True colours on show for all to see. Deary me.
A lot of probable xenophobes on here, when you call them out on it they revert to, “Oh, but I have brown friends/brown skin so I can’t be a racist.”
Anyone seen our old friend Faroukh?
Touched a nerve? Butt hurt? You would be too if you were accused of something you are not by a complete stranger hiding behind an ID as “Jim” As I said in my original reply, which was ignored – quote “And DID I raise an objection to helping? Did I? No. I questioned the NUMBER, families included, not the need or validity of helping those who are entitled…there is a big difference. To me, the numbers quoted show that many are “jumping on the bandwagon” when not entitled, which happens time after time after time when migrants abuse our open… Read more »
And before anyone calls me out, Jim et al, I’m married to a lady of colour. Daniele is not racist and was open to my multicultural family meeting him; says a lot about the man.