Ukrainian refugees Elena Sidorova, 30, her husband Vladimir Sidorova, 31, and their daughters Polina (centre), aged 9, and twins Eva (left) and Zlata (right), aged 2, who fled their home in Odesa, at the Egros refugee transit centre in Iasi, Romania, May 12, 2022
MINISTERS are running out of time to decide whether to extend Ukrainian refugees’ visas and local authority funding for sponsorship schemes as a rising number of people are at risk of becoming homeless, the public spending watchdog has warned.
According to a National Audit Office (NAO) report published yesterday, the future of the Homes for Ukraine scheme, which facilitated the arrival of 134,700 Ukrainians in Britain between March 18 2022 and October 9, is “not yet clear.”
NAO comptroller and auditor general Gareth Davies said: “The government will soon need to take important decisions about the future of the scheme, including whether to extend visas beyond three years and whether to extend funding for local authorities and sponsors, which currently finishes before visas expire.
