This letter appears in today’s edition of The Times (UK) under the heading “Britain must do its bit to sort out the Calais Jungle Problem”:
Sir, Recent media coverage of the situation in Calais (“Dawn raid on the Jungle to end migrants’ stay in Calais shantytown”, report, Sept 23) does not reflect the fact that some states, mainly on the EU’s southern and eastern flanks, such as Greece and Malta, are receiving disproportionate numbers of asylum claimants.
Regretably, reception conditions for asylum seekers and chances for refugees to find protection differ among EU countries. As a consequence, asylum seekers will move to France or even onwards unless better standards are implemented across the EU. The European Commission is looking at voluntary initiatives, such as responsibility-sharing among EU member states, to help to share out some arrivals rather than leaving frontline states bearing inordinate responsibility.
Considering the long tradition of refugee protection in the UK, as well as the competence of its institutions, the country is well placed to encourage better practice and to share its expertise. Of the 42 million uprooted people in the world last year, only some 0.7 per cent entered Europe and 0.074 per cent reached the UK. The UK is not in danger of being “swamped” by asylum claimants, as some commentators suggest, but is certainly in the position to extend its support to states elsewhere in Europe and in other parts of the world which, due to their geographical location, indeed bear a disproportionate refugee burden.
Roland Schilling
UNHCR Representative to the UK
