Boris Johnson rejected calls on Monday for Britain to ease visa demands on Ukrainian refugees fleeing conflict, saying Britain was a generous country but it needed to maintain checks on who was arriving.
The UN estimates that more than 1.5 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia started bombarding its neighbour, with hundreds of thousands pouring into Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and elsewhere.
Responding to criticism Britain was not doing enough and was far behind its European neighbours in helping address the continent’s biggest humanitarian crisis since World War II, Boris said:
“We are a very, very generous country. What we want though is control and we want to be able to check.” he told reporters. “I think it’s sensible given what's going on in Ukraine to make sure that we have some basic ability to check who is coming in.”
The British government has been condemned by charities, Opposition lawmakers and France after its insistence that refugees first acquire a visa meant some Ukrainians have been stuck in the French city of Calais, unable to enter Britain, and provoking a diplomatic row.
The EU has agreed to grant temporary residency to Ukrainians fleeing the invasion and give them access to employment, social welfare and housing for up to three years.
Britain has announced visa schemes for those who have family in the country or a willing sponsor.
Media reports at the weekend said Britain had only issued about 50 visas for Ukrainians so far, although Johnson disputed that without giving further details.
Labour Party leader Keir Starmer said: “There should be a simple route to sanctuary for those that are fleeing for their lives. The home office is in a complete mess about this, they keep changing the rules.”
Bread factory hit
Ukrainian officials said a bread factory had been hit by a Russian air strike on Monday as the country’s negotiators assembled for talks with Russian officials after previous rounds that brought no respite in the conflict.
The bodies of at least 13 civilians were recovered from rubble after factory in the town of Makariv in the Kyiv region was hit, local emergency services said. Five people were rescued of the 30 believed to have been there at the time. Reuters was not immediately able to verify the reported attack.