Is the Dubs scheme really a ‘pull factor’?

In the debate around the Dubs Amendment, government ministers have claimed that the scheme acts as a ‘pull factor’ and should therefore be scrapped.

Put simply, they believe that by providing a safe and legal way for unaccompanied child refugees in Europe to reach the UK, the Dubs scheme encourages children to make the dangerous journey across the Mediterranean.

While I have no doubt that this claim is made with honest intentions, as I set out in front of the Home Affairs Select Committee yesterday, the evidence pointing to a pull factor is speculative at best.

In fact, these schemes are a lifeline for child refugees who would otherwise fall into the hands of traffickers and smugglers.

Forced to flee by ‘push factors’

Children and their parents are forced to flee by the ‘push factors’ that come with armed conflict: fear, poverty and desperation.

Facing these terrors, the fact that a safe, stable and tolerant continent exists in close proximity will always act as a ‘pull factor’.

However, there is limited evidence that the Dubs scheme makes it more likely that people will risk their lives in search of safety.

But there is plenty of evidence that safe routes result in children staying in safe situations. And far from encouraging people trafficking and smuggling, safe routes disrupt traffickers’ business models.

What happened in France last year is just one example of this.

What happened in Calais

In October, the Government voiced surprise at how ‘peaceful’ the clearance of the Calais camp was.

There were plenty of problems with the way that the clearance was carried out, but the fact that it was ‘peaceful’ came as no surprise to those of us working in the camp.

The unaccompanied children living in the Jungle were desperate for a safe route to the UK.

As soon as this became an option, they willingly worked with the authorities. They could be moved safely, in an organised way and kept out of the hands of smugglers.

Protecting children from smugglers

In Dunkirk, where conditions are even worse than Calais, people were too scared to even talk about Dubs.

The people traffickers in the camp tried to silence any mention of this safe route because they knew it could disrupt their business model.

It undermined their crime and kept children safe.

Rather than using unproven theories as an excuse not to intervene, the question we should be asking is: how can we best protect vulnerable child refugees?

When other options have evaporated

Children and their families will only make the dangerous Mediterranean crossing in the most desperate circumstances.

When I was in Jordan last year, all of the refugees I spoke to said they would rather stay close to home. And by providing food, shelter and education, UK aid is making this possible.

It is only when all other options have evaporated, that people take these extreme risks.

No one would choose to put their child in a boat that is little more than ‘lilos with sides’ if they were not truly desperate.

The Dubs scheme must stay open

So, the answer is simple.

As well as providing welcome support to refugees in the Middle East and North Africa, we must also do what is in our power to protect the children who have already risked their lives in search of safety.

The Dubs scheme is one simple way of doing this, which is why it must remain open.