Opinion: 'Contrast in how UK treats Palestinian and Ukrainian refugees is brutal'

Richard Burden, a former British parliamentarian, has written a column for Middle East Eye accusing the UK government of double standards when it comes to Palestinian and Ukrainian refugees. 

He writes: "The contrast between the way the UK treats Ukrainian refugees and those fleeing Gaza is stark and it is brutal. To be allowed entry to the UK, someone fleeing Gaza has to demonstrate both that he or she already has permission to enter the UK for longer than six months and that he or she has a spouse or a child aged 17 or under living here.

If you have a brother or sister living in the UK, or you are a vulnerable older person with an adult son or daughter here, the UK’s rules tell you to forget it.

No such conditions are imposed on people fleeing Ukraine. Indeed, under the Homes for Ukraine scheme, UK citizens have been supported to welcome Ukrainian refugees into their own homes, whether or not they have a family connection. Rightly so." 

You can read the full column below. 

Opinion: The contrast in how the UK treats Palestinian and Ukrainian refugees is brutal