Is it a sin to be a girl? To learn? To exist? I just want an education

Immigration minister Jenrick accused of 'reneging on his moral duty' to help Afghans

THE Tories have "slammed the door shut" on 20 brave Afghan women who defied the Taliban to study medicine and dreamed of coming to train in Scotland.

The trainee doctors had been offered the chance to study in Scotland but need the UK Government to give them visas to come to the UK under a scheme for Afghans persecuted by the hardline government there.

But the visas have been denied, with Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick saying "the capacity of the UK to resettle people under this scheme is not unlimited".

The students were forced to give up medicine after the Taliban banned women from attending university last year. They are now effectively living under house arrest as they cannot go out without a male chaperone.

The UK Government had initially said that the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme would reopen in January to allow the women to come to study at Glasgow, Edinburgh, St Andrews, Aberdeen or Dundee.

The date was then pushed back until August. Now Jenrick has said the Tory Government will not commit to allowing the would-be doctors to enter the UK - with one of the students claiming the decision has left her suicidal.

Midlothian MP Owen Thompson had written to Jenrick urging him to create a plan for the women to come to Scotland.

In his letter, Jenrick said "difficult decisions" had to be made. He said: "We recognise there are many vulnerable individuals who remain in Afghanistan and the region.

"The capacity of the UK to resettle people under this scheme is not unlimited and difficult decisions have to be made on who will be prioritised for resettlement.

He adds: "At this stage, we cannot commit to opening for new referrals at a specific time." Thompson blasted Jenrick for his response, saying: "The immigration minister Robert Jenrick is slamming the door shut in the face of the world's most vulnerable women.