Fresh plea to bring home stranded constituents trapped amid coronavirus woe
A Black Country MP is demanding the Government help repatriate an estimated 100 constituents who are trapped overseas because of the coronavirus pandemic.
John Spellar is taking up the fight for people who immigrated to Britain but who do not hold British citizenship.
The Warley member of parliament raised their plight at Prime Minister’s questions this week.
Saying the Government had helped British passport holders to return home, he told Boris Johnson: “The Foreign Office seems to be washing its hands of those with indefinite leave to remain even though they have lived here for many years and their husbands, wives, parents and grandparents are British citizens.”
In response, the Prime Minister said the government had helped over 1.3 million British nationals return and spent £75 million in charter flights, adding: “We are doing everything we can to bring back people as fast as we can.”
Speaking afterwards Mr Spellar said the Foreign Office was failing families who had contacted him after their loved ones became stranded.
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His Warley constituency has one of the largest populations of Sikhs in the West Midlands as well as many people originally from Pakistan and India.
Saying it was causing great anxiety to families and communities, he said: “I have a woman who works for the NHS, whose husband went to India to spread his father’s ashes and now he is trapped and can’t return, which means she has problems with child care that affects her work.”
He also warned many elderly people stuck in the Indian subcontinent were suffering because they had begun to run out of medicines they had brought with them.
Criticising the delays, he said: “There doesn’t seem to be any sense of urgency in getting this resolved.
“These people have worked and are working here, paying taxes and are part of families where their husbands, wives and children are British nationals
“They have come here and in many cases worked for decades. Of course we should sort out their cases.”
He also claimed the government had issued incorrect advice: “I recently had cases of people in Jamaica who can’t return home and have been told by the Foreign Office to travel back via America.
“But the United States isn’t issuing visas, so they are stuck in the West Indies.
“For many in the Foreign Office it’s a can’t do attitude rather than a can do attitude.
“What the government should do is check if these people have leave to remain in the United Kingdom, get them registered, charter the planes and fly them back.”
Estimating thousands could be left wondering when they can return home , he added: “I’ve spoken to other MPs from all parties who also have people stranded aboard.
“I’ve certainly got dozens but that is probably well over a hundred if I count up all the countries in South-East Asia.”
