Under the Homes for Ukraine visa scheme, we have seen many thousands of Britons put their hands up to host Ukrainians fleeing the carnage in their homeland. However, the process to apply has been described by the Ukrainian ambassador to the UK, Vadym Prystaiko, as being “unnecessary, long, [and] bureaucratic”.
The government should realise that there’s more to be gained than the warm fuzzy feeling of a global do-gooder if we prioritise the expedient assistance of as many Ukrainians as possible, as soon as possible.
The combination of EU workers in the UK heading back home post-Brexit, combined with the necessary safety net support provided by the government in the pandemic, has culminated in an unemployment rate of 3.7% in the first quarter of this year. This is the lowest it’s been since 1974, and the first time that there have been fewer unemployed people than job vacancies.
In other words, UK businesses need employees now. And it turns out that there’s an able workforce ready to assist if they could get some help from the Home Office to simplify getting here. They are skilled workers too. In February this year, Ukraine was home to 5,000 IT companies, 290,000 developers, 150 fintech companies, five unicorn companies and startups that had secured $1.68bn (£1.35bn) of funding within the first 11 months of 2021. Before the war, Ukraine was positioning itself as a hub for people adept in digital transformation and business innovation.
Surely prioritising and simplifying the process of applying for a visa for people who are highly skilled and desperately in need of our assistance is therefore a no-brainer?
Nick Greenberg, Shubham Agarwal, Vathuthita Techataratip, Jun Hatakeyama and Kate Halsted
Judge business school, University of Cambridge
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