AFGHAN refugees must be given permanent and secure accommodation, the SNP’s Alison Thewliss has said in a letter to the Home Secretary.
Thewliss has written to Suella Braverman amid reports that 305 Afghan refugees living in hotels in Scotland will be labelled as "trespassers" if they do not comply with Home Office evictions.
The Home Office has told Afghans they must leave their temporary accommodation by August 31 and find their own place to live.
Many asylum seekers do not have a passport or bank account and so will find this extremely difficult, Thewliss has argued.
Refugee charities have urged the UK Government to secure permanent places to live for Afghans forced to leave temporary hotel accommodation, warning that hundreds of refugees now face homelessness.
Thewliss said refugees have been placed in a lose-lose situation.
She said: “On what is the two-year anniversary of the fall of Kabul, the UK Government should hang their head in shame at the way they have treated Afghan refugees who have fled to these isles.
"Unfortunately, due to Home Office incompetence, Afghan refugees in Scotland have been put in a lose-lose situation. They either go against the advice of the Home Office and risk losing support, or follow the advice and risk homelessness.
“All of the talk two years ago about a warm welcome for Afghan refugees – some of whom worked with our armed forces as translators – appears to have been nothing more than hot air from the UK Government.
“Whilst Scotland remains under the control of a cruel Westminster immigration system, refugees and asylum seekers in our communities will continue to face hardship and anxiety.”
In her letter, Thewliss insists many of the refugees have begun to integrate and settle into local communities and were told by the Home Office they would not receive support if they found their own permanent accommodation.
It goes on: “Yet this support on accommodation has not been forthcoming and some Afghans now report being told to look for their own accommodation on private rental websites.
“This is despite reports of some landlords discriminating against Afghans as well as the practical difficulties that come with renting if you do not have a passport or a UK bank account. The result is that a significant number of people will not have been able to arrange permanent accommodation by the deadline set in your department’s eviction notices.”
The Home Office has been contacted for comment.
