(Updated Thursday 16th September)

I am writing again with an update on the situation in Afghanistan as it stands today, having received new information from the UK Government. Please read this update in full.

 

Another week has passed, and my office and many around the UK have had no more responses from our emails to the Home Office, the FCO or the ARAP schemes.  

 

After a statement in Parliament on Monday from Victoria Atkins MP, followed by a letter, the latest information on the outcome is that we will not get any responses. Please see her comment below: 

 

‘We must deal with the circumstances as they are, rather than as we would wish them to be. This new reality means that, at present, we cannot provide to MPs assessments or updates on those individuals who remain in Afghanistan and whose cases they have raised. We appreciate that is difficult news to deliver to constituents who are desperately worried about family members and friends. With great regret, we will not be able, therefore, to respond to colleagues with specific updates on individuals. The deteriorating security situation means that such information is not possible to obtain or may change very quickly.’   

 

You can read the full Parliamentary statement here: https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2021-09-13/debates/D8892FE7-5BFE-431C-8CBE-F64B45D19995/AfghanistanPolicy  

 

This is incredibly disappointing for everyone, given the time and effort MPs and their teams spent logging your families details with the Home Office. I can only apologise for this very distressing news. 

 

We therefore cannot guarantee that any of our emails have been read or logged, and we as MPs have now been asked by the Government, to signpost you to the guidance provided rather than seek to pursue cases on your behalf.  

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/afghan-relocations-and-assistance-policy     

 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/afghan-citizens-resettlement-scheme    

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/afghanistan-uk-government-response  

 

My Labour colleagues and I will continue to hold the government to account and urge them to provide the support and clarity that is so desperately needed for the people left in Afghanistan. Their handling of this crisis has been shambolic.  

 

​​​​​​​Please be assured that I will continue to update you as soon as any new information becomes available.

 

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