The UK has been criticised by some charities for taking only a small number of child refugees. Despite promising to take 480, the UK has so far only resettled 220.
But this week Lord Alf Dubs – who successfully brought an amendment to Parliament to relocate unaccompanied minors to the UK from Europe – said that if Jersey took just a small number, politicians in the UK could use the Island as an example of how Britain should increase its efforts.
He said: ‘No one is saying that everyone should come to the UK or Jersey. We are saying we should all share responsibility for the plight of these children.
‘And Jersey can make a small gesture by just taking a few, which would be terrific.
‘We [UK politicians] could say, “Look at what Jersey is doing” and then push for the UK and Scotland to do the same.’
Lord Alf Dubs spoke at a sold-out talk at Hautlieu School organised by Jersey Cares; Refugee Aid Group on Thursday about his own experiences and was joined by the charity Safe Passage UK, who discussed the ways in which Jersey could go about housing refugee children.
He said: ‘The key thing in getting any government to take on child refugees is to gain the support of public opinion. Politicians will move on this once they see they have the support of the public.
‘I believe the key in getting my amendment going through was by winning public opinion.’
Speaking about ways in which Islanders’ support can be won, he said: ‘Schools and faith groups are incredible ways of getting the message out there.
‘Jersey people are humanitarian and outward looking and when it comes to sharing the responsibility of welcoming refugees, I think they just need to be presented with the facts and asked to get involved.’
Lord Dubs fled his native Prague to travel to London at the age of six in March 1939, shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War, becoming a Labour MP in 1979.
He said: ‘I was one out of 10,000 children who were rescued in just one year by the UK. Currently the numbers we are talking about now [for the UK] is 1,000 a year over ten years.
‘That figure isn’t that high and works out at no more than three to six people per local authority across the UK.’
Speaking on his previous attempts to persuade the Crown Dependencies to take refugee children, he said: ‘Perceptions have moved on from a few years ago and I think people are more aware of the extent of the crisis.’
Previously, in 2015, an attempt by former Chief Minister Ian Gorst to bring a handful of refugee families to Jersey was blocked due to technicalities concerning international treaties and immigration laws.
Lord Dubs went on to say: ‘We in northern Europe are sheltered from the strong population movements but the humanitarian argument is still there. And I think we should play our part, even in a small way.
‘We have a shared responsibility. These people are the most vulnerable of the vulnerable and we must try to do just a little bit to give some of them a decent life.’
