Barring skilled refugees from work in the UK is a travesty that must be solved

‘We need doctors but when people with those skills arrive here, it is almost impossible for them to practise.’ Photograph: MBI/Alamy

Regardless of education or experience, getting a job as a refugee in the UK is hard.

Accessing most skilled roles requires English language tuition and requalification, the costs of which are prohibitive. As a result, we have neurosurgeons working as care assistants, marine engineers driving cabs, teachers with no students and lawyers stacking supermarket shelves.