Swinney calls on UK Government to enable Gaza students to travel to Scotland

Scotland’s First Minister has called for “urgent action” from the UK Government to ensure students from Gaza can take up their places at Scottish universities.

John Swinney said that other countries have successfully evacuated Gazan students to enable them to continue their studies.

And he called on the UK Government to do “everything in its power” to enable students to travel from Gaza to Scotland.

The UK Government has said it is doing everything it can to find a solution.

Mr Swinney spoke out after the Sunday Mail reported on a Palestinian student who has a place at Edinburgh University, but has not been able to leave Gaza to start her course next month due to visa processing issues.

Mr Swinney said: “I am appalled at the situation the students from Gaza are facing. We must see urgent action from the UK Government to support them in taking up their university places in Scotland.

“The people of Gaza are already suffering unimaginably at the hands of the Israeli government – the idea that these students could also be denied the chance to take up the university places in Scotland they have worked so hard to attain is not acceptable to me.

“I am aware that other countries including France, Ireland and Italy have managed to successfully evacuate students, so the UK Government cannot simply duck its responsibilities here.

“Where there is a political will, a resolution can be found – and failure to act is quite literally putting these people’s lives at risk.”

Scotland’s Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth has written to the UK Home Secretary and UK Secretary of State for Education calling for action to support the students impacted and for urgent discussions.

Mr Swinney said: “I am clear that the international community must put a stop to Israel’s killing in Gaza and that we must see the immediate recognition of a sovereign, independent Palestine.

“But until that point, the UK Government must do everything it can to ensure ordinary Gazans are not punished further.

“Scotland looks forward to welcoming students from Gaza seeking to take their places at our universities – the UK Government must do the right thing and do everything in its power to allow them to get here.”

A UK Government spokesperson said: “We are aware of these students and are actively considering how we can best support.

“Of course, the situation on the ground in Gaza makes this extremely challenging but we are doing everything we can to find a solution.”

The normal arrangements for non-British nationals requiring a visa are to make an online visa application and submit their biometrics at a Visa Application Centre, prior to travel to the UK.

The UK Government said biometrics are an essential part of the immigration process as they enable it to confirm the identity of the person and assess whether they pose a risk to public safety.

Where an applicant cannot travel to a Visa Application Centre (VAC) to enrol their biometrics, they can contact the UK Government to explain their circumstances, so it can consider all the options.