UK Support For Ukrainian Refugees Already Waning

Public support for Ukrainian refugees is already waning in Britain, polling suggests, as the war continues to rage.

- Lizzie Dearden

Polling by YouGov shows that in March, three-quarters of people supported resettling Ukrainians in the UK and 42 per cent thought the figure should be in the tens of thousands "at least".

But the figures have now dropped to 71 per cent of people supporting resettlement, with 29 per cent wanting to see tens of thousands of refugees welcomed.

There is no resettlement scheme for Ukrainian refugees, with the government instead offering three-year visas - that do not amount to a grant of asylum - to people who have relatives in the UK or are sponsored by volunteers.

So far, there have been 175,100 applications to the scheme, 148,300 of which have been granted, and 91,000 Ukraine visa holders have arrived in the UK.

Ministers set up a bespoke Afghan resettlement process following the Taliban takeover last year, but YouGov's polling shows that only half the public support it. The scheme, which started in January, has been applied to some of the 15,000 people who were already in the UK after being evacuated from Afghanistan.