The Ministry of Defence has provided an update regarding the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) scheme in response to an inquiry from Tom Gordon, MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough.
As of 12 December 2024, a total of 7,662 principal applicants are awaiting an initial eligibility decision under the ARAP scheme. This programme, designed to support Afghan nationals who assisted British forces during operations in Afghanistan, has faced challenges due to the high number of applications.
Luke Pollard, Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Defence, addressed the question, confirming that the Ministry is committed to improving the efficiency of the decision-making process.
He acknowledged the complexity of the task, noting that not all applications can be processed in the same timeframe due to various factors, such as the need for additional information from applicants and verification checks involving other government departments.
“The time it takes to process an ARAP application varies, and not all applicants will receive an eligibility decision in the same timeframe due a wide range of factors,” Pollard explained.
“Each case is assessed on its own merit and, as such, some may take longer than others to process.”
Despite the delays, the government say that they remain focused on identifying eligible applicants and facilitating their relocation as quickly as possible.
Think it was August 2021 the withdrawal from Afghanistan was completed….nearly 3 and a half years later we still haven’t processed the claims of those who chose to help us….. shame onthe Government
I’m thinking the British army would know who interpreted for them in Afghan and there would be uk army documentation / records in uk? Above says ‘principle’ so possibly meaning + family. Does MoD think about this stuff before engagement? Obviously didn’t think about getting out of Kabul airport. Afghan is one of the world’s biggest refugee exporters.
With peak UK deployment of 9500 and average levels lower, it looks as though every one of them had his/ her own translator. Ridiculous commitment following an even more nonsensical military intervention which,predictably, achieved nothing.
Over the 14 years of operations in Afghanistan more than 200,000 UK forces were engaged. A substantial number. You guys are literally talking rot.
We’ve never brought home interpreters or locally employed staff before… Unfortunately, we need to on this occasion as politicians have fucked up the end of the war. It wasn’t a nonsensical engagement… We should do more to stop murderous regimes but the British press are craven, politicians toxic and the public cowardly
It was a an utterly ill judged intervention. Our long imperial involvement with Afghanistan was largely unsuccessful and on several occasions disastrous. We, above all, should have learned from these and not followed the USA into this shambles. Or we could have looked at the more recent failed Soviet attempt to impose a government.
The Taliban hadn’t attacked Britain and posed no threat to us. The USA invoked article 5 when it hadn’t been attacked by a foreign power but a group of terrorists that its security forces were too incompetent to deal with. Bush tried to deflect from this failure by inventing the ” war on terror” and Blair followed him obediently.
To expect UK taxpayers to incur more costs now to add to the utter waste of money spent on the war is outrageous.
Regardless of the rights or wrongs of us getting involved in Afghanistan, the interpreters, guides etc still put themselves at risk to help our troops and deserve our help and to live here, since the Taliban would happily skin them alive for helping us.
It has been over 3 years since Taliban retook control.
For those whom assisted, be at high level involvement down to general labouring at a camp, but remain in Afghaistan. If they have been able to live in afghanistan since the talibsn takeover, does that suggest that the Taliban might not actually be interested in them and they are not at risk?
It’s an absolute joke to be quite honest I work in the military and it is a joke the amount of free stuff they are getting… well if the public truly knew what all these are getting I think people would be pretty pissed off to be honest this country has fallen, this is not what I agreed to defend and fight for when I joined up, I cannot wait till my time is up I’m counting down the days the mod has turned an army I was proud of and an organisation I used to be able to proudly say I’m a part of into something I now tell people to not join for their best interests the now defence force of the uk is a joke and the people in charge should be ashamed of what they have turned it into
I and others within the army also agree if we was to have a war again anywhere we would be fucked half the people you have in now are med downgraded and the other half are panzies and would run from a fight for their country, I hope you’re ashamed of yourselves mod
Last point for you to note as well if you read this someone got out recently by doing drugs because he was told he isn’t aloud to have early termination that bloke is now earning 5k a month fixing motorways where as me two ranks above what he was on is on 2700 a month 😂 it’s a joke I’m not surprised your numbers are so low anyway approximately 480 days to go till I’ve reached the end of my contract thank god and you can keep the crappy half pension that is only 6800 a year when I’m 65 for 12 years service again what an utter joke
What a bitter and sour person hahaha ,
If you hate the Mitary so much do use all a favour and sign off but than again you daunt hence why your waiting for your 12 year point (not for the crappy pension or crappy lump sum )
And with you doing less than 12 years that means you never went on a combat tour of duty like most ,so what would you be a panzery would runs or that solider that signs off 🤔
Also congratulations on being a full screw but no combat and you going in on the MOD like that ,
Most Troops I know came back from Afghan broken or few years down the line the body starts to break so sorry if some are med down graded but iam sure they have put there shift in 🫡
Anyway hope you rest of you service is as sour hahaha TIT!
Bloody hell it would seem you are doing everyone a favour by leaving! Biggest chip on a shoulder I’ve read for quite some time! I presume your Bn is a bit chip shop, as you talk like this and probably a full screw who should be the back bone of Battalion! Best you go, cheers.
I don’t suppose these interpreters (afghan) asked to goto Russia , when they left. At the moment UK is a safe place to live that’s one of the reasons these people want to move her. BUT WE ARE TOO FULL AND ARE SLOWLY COLLAPSING.
ARAP was a really badly organised process from start to it’s not yet finished. I had the pleasure of getting this gem dumped on my lap in 2021/22 when the home office helpfully informed my organisation that they were settling around 500 Afghans in holiday accommodation and could we sort the healthcare and safeguarding out please… with no allocated resources or funding and ohh you have 2 weeks.
There was no centre support or even risk assessment of health needs so we had to d a crash review of the healthcare needs of the Afghans as well as risks to the resident population..
Risks that no one had even really considered or done anything about including introduction of a large population that we’re never vaccinated and had significant levels of really nasty diseases like TB.. diseases that our own populations were no longer protected against..
Questions like how the hell we’re we’re going to find the public health support, primary care, mental health support and child safeguarding were essentially ignored by the home office.. who dumped them in holiday accommodation and ran for the hills.