Three Afghan refugee families will be resettled in Warwick and Leamington - but protesters say that is not enough

A petition has been set up to urge the council to resettle more families
Campaigners set up a stall outside of Leamington Town Hall yesterday (Monday). They were joined by Matt Western MP (right).Campaigners set up a stall outside of Leamington Town Hall yesterday (Monday). They were joined by Matt Western MP (right).
Campaigners set up a stall outside of Leamington Town Hall yesterday (Monday). They were joined by Matt Western MP (right).

Three Afghan refugee families will be resettled in Warwick and Leamington - but protesters say that is not enough.

Warwick District Council (WDC) has confirmed that it has agreed to find homes for the families, following the mass evacuation from Afghanistan due to the Taliban takeover.

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However, some campaigners are calling on the council to find homes for more families.

"Three families is simply not enough," said political activist Lucy Phillips at a demonstration she held yesterday (Monday) in Leamington.

"As a resident of Warwick and Leamington, I am astounded that we should be accepting such a small number of refugee families who are literally fleeing from terror and persecution.

"As a concerned resident of Warwickshire, I call upon Warwick District Councillors to push hard to welcome more refugees to our warm and welcoming community."

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Campaigners set up a stall outside of Leamington Town Hall yesterday (Monday) and Lucy added: "We received an amazing response from the general public, all signatures will be added to our ongoing petition in which we will present to Warwick District Council and press the matter further.

"Our next stall to show solidarity with Afghan refugees will be on Sunday September 12 at 12(noon), where we intend to collect more signatures to support the cause."

A link to the recent petition can be found here: https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/warwick-and-leamington-refugees-welcome-hereWarwick and Leamington MP Matt Western said: “It was great to see people turn out at such short notice to demand both Warwickshire County Council and Warwick District Council show real commitment and increase the number of Afghan refugees they rehome.

“Organisers tell me they will demonstrate again soon and they’re urge the public to join them.

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“I’m also told opposition councillors' efforts to lobby WDC saw leaders pledge to provide a home for three families rather than just one. If we keep up our efforts, I hope we can push the number up even further.

“As the organisers of yesterday’s event said, this is a matter of life or death. We cannot delay if we want to save lives. We must play our part.”

In his latest newsletter, council leader Andrew Day said: "We’re delighted to be offering three refugee families a home and a very warm welcome to our community."

We have approached the council today to get their reaction to the petition.