Michael Gove met members of a Ukrainian community group in Edinburgh to discuss his Homes for Ukraine scheme.
The scheme, designed to allow Ukrainians with no family links to come to Britain and be hosted by members of the public, who will be paid £350 per month for doing so, has come under fire since it launched more than two weeks ago for not issuing enough visas.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has also warned of the danger of scheme turning into “Tinder for sex traffickers”.
But the Secretary of State for Housing and Communities said he discussed with members of the Edinburgh Ukrainian Club how to make the scheme “even better”.
We have been discussing how we can make sure the Homes for Ukraine scheme works even better
Speaking outside the club on Wednesday, Mr Gove said: “I have just been talking to some wonderful representatives of the Ukrainian community here in Scotland and we have been discussing how we can make sure the Homes for Ukraine scheme works even better.
“There’s been an amazing outpouring of generosity on behalf of people in Scotland and across the UK, and this UK-wide scheme is designed to ensure that the generosity and the good-heartedness of the British people is matched with the need of so many in Ukraine and so many in the countries adjacent to Ukraine, to provide people with a safe secure home.”
Earlier, the Home Office said just 2,700 visas have been granted to people wanting to come to the UK under the Homes for Ukraine scheme, despite applications reaching 28,300.
SNP MP Stuart McDonald said the visa figures are “desperately poor” and “highlight the UK Government’s disappointing response to the refugee crisis unfolding in Ukraine”.
They must now heed the calls and waive requirements for Ukrainians to apply for visas in advance of their arrival in the UK
He added: “These figures must be a wake-up call for the UK Government, and they must now heed the calls and waive requirements for Ukrainians to apply for visas in advance of their arrival in the UK, so as to facilitate speedy access to international protection and ensure people can find safety and be able to rebuild their lives.”
Many Ukrainians have been “advertising” themselves on social media in a bid to find hosts under the Homes for Ukraine scheme, prompting concerns that the programme could expose vulnerable people to abuse.
Robina Qureshi, director of Positive Action in Housing, a refugee homelessness charity, said the credibility of the Homes for Ukraine scheme is “steadily crumbling” and warned of Ukrainian women, children and young people becoming prime targets on social media for criminal people traffickers.
“The scheme must be stopped in its tracks and sponsorship requirements lifted to avoid endangering the lives of Ukrainian women and children,” she said.
“Twelve miles across the water, Ireland is working with NGOs, bringing in up to 200,000 people.
“Yet here we have a humanitarian tragedy unfolding and this government has granted visas to only 2,700 people. Women are hiding in basements with children and asking us if the UK will take them in.”
She added: “This government has made a complete mockery of the refugee convention. The sincere and genuine goodwill of British people is being poured down the drain.
“It was a deliberate ploy to divert goodwill down a dead end, a ruse to make people think they are helping. We are disgusted and ashamed.”
There are two UK schemes for Ukrainian refugees: the Homes for Ukraine sponsorship scheme, for which anybody with space to house a refugee can apply; and the Ukraine family scheme, for those who already have relatives in the UK.
Some 21,000 visas had been issued under the Ukraine family scheme as of Friday, and a total of 36,300 applications had been submitted, according to provisional data published on the Home Office’s website.
The UN refugee agency said four million people have now fled Ukraine since Russia launched its war on February 24.
