TY - JOUR

T1 - The UK’s ‘Safe and Legal (Humanitarian) Routes’

T2 - From Colonial Ties to Privatising Protection

AU - Benson, Michaela

AU - Sigona, Nando

AU - Zambelli, Elena

PY - 2024/6/30

Y1 - 2024/6/30

N2 - In this article, the UK's ‘safe and legal (humanitarian) routes’ are evaluated by examining how they are positioned in the post-Brexit migration regime, and how these domestic provisions compare to those underwritten by international protections. The Hong Kong British Nationals (Overseas)—HK BN(O)s—and Ukraine visa schemes are an area of focus which, combined, account for the vast majority of those arriving in the UK for the purposes of humanitarian protections since Brexit. Despite being formally presented under the same banner, the schemes have significant differences in terms of eligibility criteria, costs, rights and entitlements. Moreover, on closer inspection, while they share an overarching policy vision informed by foreign policy priorities, these new provisions are underpinned by different genealogies and policy logics. While the HK BN(O) scheme is rooted in the tradition of ancestry visas and colonial entanglements and requires that potential beneficiaries pay for protections, the Ukrainian schemes are more closely aligned with recent refugee resettlement schemes and share with them the push towards greater involvement of private and community stakeholders in humanitarian protection.

AB - In this article, the UK's ‘safe and legal (humanitarian) routes’ are evaluated by examining how they are positioned in the post-Brexit migration regime, and how these domestic provisions compare to those underwritten by international protections. The Hong Kong British Nationals (Overseas)—HK BN(O)s—and Ukraine visa schemes are an area of focus which, combined, account for the vast majority of those arriving in the UK for the purposes of humanitarian protections since Brexit. Despite being formally presented under the same banner, the schemes have significant differences in terms of eligibility criteria, costs, rights and entitlements. Moreover, on closer inspection, while they share an overarching policy vision informed by foreign policy priorities, these new provisions are underpinned by different genealogies and policy logics. While the HK BN(O) scheme is rooted in the tradition of ancestry visas and colonial entanglements and requires that potential beneficiaries pay for protections, the Ukrainian schemes are more closely aligned with recent refugee resettlement schemes and share with them the push towards greater involvement of private and community stakeholders in humanitarian protection.

KW - Ukraine visa schemes

KW - asylum

KW - citizenship Hong Kong British Nationals (Overseas)

KW - colonial legacy

KW - coloniality

KW - humanitarian protections

KW - migration

KW - refugee

KW - temporary protections

U2 - 10.1111/1467-923X.13409

DO - 10.1111/1467-923X.13409

M3 - Journal article

VL - 95

SP - 263

EP - 271

JO - The Political Quarterly

JF - The Political Quarterly

SN - 0032-3179

IS - 2

ER -