More than 100,000 people have offered to house Ukrainian refugees within 24 hours of the government scheme launching.
Offering monthly payments of £350 to hosts, the scheme was devised after days of criticism over the government’s handling of the humanitarian crisis following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Michael Gove said it will allow Ukrainians with no family links to come to the UK with “unrestricted access” to benefits, employment and healthcare.
The levelling-up secretary added there would be “no limit” to the number of Ukrainians who can benefit from the scheme.
Boris Johnson thanked all those who had signed up so far.
Meanwhile, the UK sanctioned more than 370 new Russians with links to Vladimir Putin, Downing Street said.
More than 1,000 sanctions have now been brought by Britain since the Russian invasion of Ukraine; 775 for individuals, the rest to banks, institutions and companies.
Sanctions on Russian goods including vodka and a ban on exports of luxury products including vehicles, fashion and art were also announced today.
More than 100,000 Britons register to sponsor Ukrainian refugees in first 24 hours
More than 100,000 people have registered their interest in sponsoring Ukrainian refugees to stay in their homes – just 24 hours after the government website went live.
Offering those who provide sanctuary a monthly payment of £350, the scheme was formally launched on Monday after days of criticism over the government’s handling of the humanitarian crisis following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Michael Gove told MPs it will allow Ukrainians with no family links to come to the UK and benefit from “unrestricted access” to benefits, employment and healthcare.
The levelling-up secretary added there would be “no limit” to the number of Ukrainians who can benefit from the scheme.
Boris Johnson justifies Saudi visit as attempt to build ‘widest possible coalition’ against Putin
Boris Johnson defended his forthcoming trip to Saudi Arabia, arguing there was a need to build the “widest possible coalition” to respond to Russia.
Asked about the mass executions in Saudi Arabia and the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Mr Johnson said: “I think what the world is seeing is the return in Ukraine to the kind of brutality, the kind of absolutely indiscriminate bombing of civilian centres, of great cities that we last saw in the European continent 80 years ago, this is quite unbelievable what is happening now in our continent.
“We need to make sure that we build the strongest, widest possible coalition to ensure that Vladimir Putin does not succeed, that we wean ourselves off Russian hydrocarbons and that is what the Uk is helping to do.”
Pressed on whether that meant a coalition with other unpleasant regimes, Mr Johnson said: “We want to build the widest possible coalition to ensure that we focus on what is happening in Ukraine, the effect that is having on the price of oil and gas.”
Partygate shows system for investigating prime minister’s ‘behaviour’ failing, former adviser suggests
The scandal over No 10 parties suggests the system for investigating a prime minister under the ministerial code is failing, a former adviser says.
Philip Mawer, a former adviser on ministerial interests, hit out at No 10’s stranglehold over what is investigated – as he warned public confidence has been “seriously damaged recently”.
“There is an issue around how the prime minister’s behaviour and/or lead in these matters is appropriately investigated,” he told a Commons inquiry.
And he added: “The recent Partygate affair has brought that question to the fore.”
The Conservatives have rejected a watchdog’s call for Boris Johnson to be stripped of the power to decide whether ministers are investigated for sleaze, despite public anger over sleaze.
Tory MPs block law to name and shame water companies that kill animals with sewage
Conservative MPs have voted down a law that would have named and shamed water companies that kill animals animals by dumping sewage into the natural environment (Jon Stone writes).
In a Commons division on Monday evening parliament rejected the plan by 286 votes to 179 – despite support from the Liberal Democrats, Labour, and other parties.
The amendment to the Animal Welfare Bill would have required a new committee on animals to detail “the number of sentient animals killed or injured as a result of polluted rivers”.
It would also have required the report to explain what water companies were doing to protect animals in the future.
MPs in favour of the change argued that current enforcement of how private water companies operate is too weak – noting that between 2018 and 2021, there were only 11 prosecutions of water companies for dumping sewage.
Arms imports to Europe up nearly 200% in last five years
Arms shipments to Europe jumped amid deteriorating relations with Russia in the five years through 2021, even as the global arms trade slowed, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Sipri) think tank said.
Compared with the previous five-year period, international transfers of major arms shrank 5 per cent globally, Sipri said in a statement. But imports to states in Europe increased 199 per cent – the biggest growth in any world region.
“The severe deterioration in relations between most European states and Russia was an important driver of growth in European arms imports, especially for states that cannot meet all their requirements through their national arms industries,” Sipri researcher Pieter Wezeman said.
Britain, Norway and the Netherlands were Europe’s biggest importers, it said. Ukraine’s imports of major arms were very limited in the period despite tensions with Russia in the run-up to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine last month.
“Other European states are also expected to increase their arms imports significantly over the coming decade, having recently placed large orders for major arms, in particular combat aircraft from the USA,” the think tank said.
The United States remained the world’s biggest arms exporter, growing its market share to 39 per cent from 32 per cent.
Boris Johnson says UK will ‘continue to support’ Ukraine after Zelensky criticism
Boris Johnson said the UK will “continue to support” Ukraine during the Russian invasion after a meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky earlier.
The Ukrainian president criticised the Nato support for his country when he addressed the meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force countries, several of which border Russia in the Baltics.
A tweet from the @10DowningStreet account said “the UK-led Force is working intensively to implement further measures to cripple Putin’s war machine, support Ukraine and shore up European security.”
The UK yesterday said it would continue to send arms to Ukraine after previous shipments of anti-tank missiles and other weapons.
Russian TV Editor who went on air with anti-war protest sign speaks out
A Russian TV editor who protested against Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine has made a statement following her arrest.
Marina Ovsyannikova has been praised by many around the world after she interrupted Russia’s most famous newsreader on the Kremlin-controlled Channel 1.
She walked on the live broadcast and told viewers “They’re lying to you here” and “Stop the war!”
The British government said it was worried for the safety of Ms Ovsyannikova.
UK sanctions 370 more Russians linked to Vladimir Putin
The UK has imposed sanctions on an additional 370 people linked to Vladimir Putin, Downing Street has said (Andrew Woodcock writes).
The move brings to more than 1,000 the total number of sanctions imposed since Mr Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, with 775 relating to individuals and the remainder to banks, institutions, companies and subsidiaries.
Britain has lagged behind US and EU allies in targeting individual oligarchs for their support of the Russian president, because new legislation brought in as a result of Brexit meant that a watertight legal case needed to be established for each one, raising fears that the process could take months to complete.
But last night’s passage of the Economic Crime Act has accelerated the process, allowing the UK to match sanctions imposed by the EU and US, and then develop detailed cases later.
The Foreign Office said that the new list included “more Russian oligarchs and their family members, Putin’s political allies and propagandists”.
Boris Johnson tells Zelensky that West ‘must do more’
Boris Johnson told Volodymyr Zelensky that he knows the West must do more to help Ukraine as Russian attacks continue.
In a video address to a London meeting of Joint Expeditionary Force nations, the Ukrainian president said Nato had been “hypnotised” by Russian aggression and fear of a third world war had stunted the alliance’s response.
Mr Johnson, at the meeting with representatives from Baltic and northern European countries, said to Mr Zelensky: “You challenge us, quite rightly, to do more and we all know that we can and we must do more.”
“I hear your point very loud and clear about the economic sanctions that we need to tighten, where we need to go harder on the banks, on Swift.”
He acknowledged it was a “desperate moment” and “we must try to do more, particularly to support you in protecting the Ukrainian people from bombardment from artillery and by aviation”.
The UK has already said it was planning to send Starstreak anti-aircraft missile systems to Ukraine.
Mr Johnson and Mr Zelensky last spoke on Sunday. The prime minister then said the UK would consider more options “for bolstering Ukraine’s self-defence”.
Ukrainian refugees can bring pets to UK
Refugees fleeing Ukraine for the UK can bring their pets with them, the government has announced.
Checks on pets will be sped up and the government will cover the costs of rabies and any other needed vaccinations, and quarantine for those awaiting vaccination.
Microchipping costs will also be covered.
Under normal UK rules, owners may enter or return to Britain with a pet cat, dog or ferret only if the animal has been microchipped, has a pet passport or health certificate and has been vaccinated against rabies.
Normally, animals from Ukraine would also need a blood test for rabies at least three months before travelling.
But these requirements have all been waived.
