The UK Government has confirmed that it does not plan to amend the eligibility criteria for the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) scheme to include those who were employed indirectly by UK government departments or armed forces.
This was clarified in a written response from Lord Coaker, the Minister of State at the Ministry of Defence, on 15 August 2024.
Baroness Coussins, a Crossbench peer, had asked whether the government intended to broaden the ARAP scheme to issue visas to individuals who were indirectly employed by UK entities during their work in Afghanistan.
In response, Lord Coaker stated that the ARAP scheme already provides resettlement routes within its existing criteria for those who the UK Government either directly or indirectly employed.
“There are no current plans to widen the eligibility criteria,” Lord Coaker affirmed, directing attention to the full eligibility criteria available on the government’s official website.
Lord Coaker also highlighted that the new team of Ministers has made the ARAP scheme an early priority, with a focus on addressing the challenges in processing applications and ensuring that the scheme fulfills the UK’s commitments to those Afghans who supported UK objectives in Afghanistan.
“The Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) scheme already provides resettlement routes within the existing criteria for those formerly employed, directly or indirectly, by the UK Government. There are no current plans to widen the eligibility criteria. The scheme’s full eligibility criteria can be found via the following link:
The new team of Ministers have made ARAP an early priority for the Department, to tackle problems which have been faced with processing ARAP applications and ensure the scheme delivers on our commitments to those brave Afghans who worked in support of UK objectives in Afghanistan.”
Given there are already over 100,000 people who claim to have worked for the British army in Afghanistan this seems like a sensible move, priority must be given to those who served along side our armed forces, beyond that I don’t see much scope to be granting people asylum in the UK. I’m sure close to 100% of the Afghan population can claim some tenuous link to employment by western forces given that their entire economy was based on western aid for 15 years. It’s not fair on those who did genuinely serve and tried to counter the Taliban and… Read more »
What about if they crossed the channel in small boats? Would you see much scope to grant them asylum then? Just curious!
“100,000 people”
How many personnel served in Afghanistan at its height? That is how many afghans per person?
I smell a rat.
100% of a population in excess of 40 million… sweeping generalizations ahoy! 😀
Approx 25K Afghans have claimed under the ARAP and 3 previous asylum policies. 17 years in theatre, so just under 1500 a year. Seems about right to me.
Fair point.
Where does this over 100,000 Afghans figure come from?