In a speech this morning (Wednesday 21 February) Shadow Home Secretary, Diane Abbott MP, announced the Labour Party’s commitment to granting child refugees the right to be reunited with their family in safety here in the UK.

This is a huge step in the right direction and one that the Refugee Council and other charities have long campaigned for. As it is, the UK remains one of only two countries across Europe to deny children the right to be reunited with their families. This needs to change. The rights of child refugees to sponsor their close family through refugee family reunion is a key part of the #FamiliesTogether campaign. You can now read information about the campaign and to get involved.

For our full reaction, see the below:

Anna Musgrave, Head of Advocacy at the Refugee Council, said: “We warmly welcome any call for improvements to the UK’s refugee family reunion rules. These rules are unfair and restrictive, keeping refugees apart from their loved ones just when they need each other most. Granting child refugees the right to be reunited with their parents here in safety in the UK would transform the lives of many children who arrived on UK shores alone, after fleeing unimaginable horrors. This change would mark a huge step in the right direction and could not be timelier with the second reading of the Refugee Family Reunion Private Members Bill next month.”