Ukraine war: Scot's claim of chaos at Home Office visa centre

Scott Yardley, from Wishaw, with wife Liza and her two daughters, Anya and Ira

A man from North Lanarkshire has described the "chaos" at one of the Home Office's visa application centres for Ukrainian refugees.

Scott Yardley is in Poland to help his wife Liza, 37, and her two daughters, Anya and Ira, arrange visas for entry to the UK.

The trio spent two days travelling from Dnipro to escape the Russian invasion.

But Mr Yardley said they have been unable to be seen at the UK visa centre in the border city of Rzeszow.

He told the BBC's Good Morning Scotland programme: "We've been to that office four times and every time it's been chaos.

"We have not been seen by anyone in each of those visits. I was told they managed to process seven people in one day, but I think there were over 300 there to apply."

Liza and her two daughters, Anya and Ira, spent two days travelling from Ukraine to Poland

Mr Yardley, from Wishaw, said his wife Liza and her daughters left Dnipro before the Russian shelling of the city began, but the development has left them "deeply concerned" for the family they left behind.

He said: "They have gone through every emotion, anger and frustration and obviously there is fear there too."

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The UK response to the Ukraine refugee crisis has faced criticism for being too slow and not as generous as other countries.

On Monday, a scheme allowing Ukrainians to come to the UK - if they have a British individual or organisation to sponsor them - is expected to be launched.

Step in right direction

Mr Yardley said this was a "step in right direction" but added "it's what should have been done in the first place".

"The system has been revised several times and it is still not been fit for purpose, so we're taking everything with a pinch of salt to see if it actually works as planned," he said.

Mr Yardley married Liza in Dnipro in 2019 and she had been expecting to move to North Lanarkshire later this year.

It is hoped she and her teenage daughters can now all come to Scotland, with the four of them travelling to Warsaw in a bid to try and sort out UK visas there.

Expanded capacity

A UK government spokeswoman said: "We are standing shoulder to shoulder with Ukrainians which is why we've made it easier for those with Ukrainian passports to come here.

"This is alongside changes to visas to ensure Ukrainians in the UK can stay here.

"We have expanded our visa application capacity to 13,000 a week, deployed additional staff across the EU, with a 24/7 helpline in place to ensure those who need appointments can get them to come here. This allows us to balance security risks while welcoming those in need."

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