Judge Rob Rinder condemns UK’s Ukrainian refugee response as a ‘national embarrassment’
It comes as the government announces there will be "no cap" on the number of refugees allowed into the UK.
Words: Alastair James; pictures: Twitter/@RobbieRinder
Judge Rob Rinder has called the UK’s response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis a matter of “national embarrassment”.
The 43-year-old TV and radio personality announced last Wednesday (9 March) that he was headin the the Ukrainian border to help his former Strictly Come Dancing dance partner, Oksana Platero, bring her grandparents home.
Reporting for talkRadio on Monday (14 March) from a train station in Poland, Rob relayed the heartbreaking experiences he had heard from people arriving in the country looking for safety.
“There’s nothing limp about me love”
Commenting on the UK Government’s number of “very positive virtue signals”, Rob says that despite a recent announcement that British households will be able to help house Ukrainian refugges, “the bureaucratic reality on the ground is a nightmare.”
He adds: “We have made the offer but frankly, there’s not the staff to deliver on it.
“As proud as I am to be British standing here, it is a matter of real national embarrassment.”
talkRADIO’s Rob Rinder, on the Polish border, tells Julia the UK’s response to the refugee crisis is a “national embarrassment”.
“The bureaucratic reality on the ground is a nightmare. We have made the offer but there aren’t the staff to deliver on it”@JuliaHB1 | @RobbieRinder pic.twitter.com/qOYRehm9yN
— talkRADIO (@talkRADIO) March 14, 2022
On Monday (14 March), the government confirmed there would be “no cap” on the number of refugees who can stay with UK hosts under the Homes for Ukraine scheme. The government has said host families will get a £350 thank you payment, reports the BBC.
Once settled, people will be able to stay in the UK for three years and have access to the NHS and other services, according to the government,
The latest figures show around 4,000 visas have been granted for Ukrainians coming to the UK to stay with their family and friends under a different scheme.
Posting on Twitter on Wednesday (9 March) Rob said: “Oksana Platero my Ukrainian dance partner on @bbcstrictly gifted me so much. Right now her grandparents are a week into their struggle to find sanctuary in a safe country. I’ll be trying to meet them on the border next week. They’re just a few of the millions who need us.”
He is hoping to meet Oksana’s parents on the Ukrainian border with Poland to bring them to safety
“If they cross into Hungary the next step will be getting them to safety with their family,” he added in follow-up tweets.
Oksana Platero my Ukrainian dance partner on @bbcstrictly gifted me so much. Right now her grandparents are a week into their struggle to find sanctuary in a safe country.
I’ll be trying to meet them on the border next week.
They’re just a few of the millions who need us.@GMB pic.twitter.com/RqYtsB6rts— Robert Rinder (@RobbieRinder) March 9, 2022
Rob and Oksana competed in the 2016 series of Strictly and reached the quarter-final.
In a crowdfunding page to help in the effort to save her grandparents Oksana wrote: “We are praying that they will make it out of Ukraine and into safety soon,” and that “What’s next is for them is unclear, unpredictable, and terrifying.”
According to the UN, more than 2 million people have fled Ukraine in the wake of Russia’s invasion.
In response to Rob Rinder’s comments, the UK Government has told Attitude that it stands “shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine” and that it has simplified the visa application process for those with valid passports. It also says it has expanded capacity to 13,000 appointments a week at application centres, as well as expanding services in the Uk and EU.
It adds in regard to the Homes for Ukraine scheme that further changes will be made tomorrow.