First Syrian refugees arrive in United Kingdom under new scheme

Those arriving in Glasgow today are the first in a series of charter flights, with refugees coming from camps in Lebanon, Jordan and Syria.

“There are two levels of screening that take place” by the United Nations and the Home Office, including “biometrics”, May told parliament on Monday.

Many people have left Syria because of the civil war that’s happening there.

‘We are due to welcome Syrian refugees to Scotland tomorrow and we need to show that we are a country of compassion and acceptance, ‘ she said.

“First of all, we are taking people directly from the camps”.

As part of their resettlement, they have been granted leave to remain for five years, after which they can apply to reside permanently in the UK.

‘This is a proud day for Scotland, ‘ the Scottish government’s minister for Europe and global development Humza Yousaf said in a statement on Tuesday.

She said: “They’re going to need a few very basic orientation support about finding their feet”.

“Syrian families who will be coming here will have very little more than the clothes on their backs and I love to see the Island reproducing the welcome it gave me”, he said.

“They’re obviously arriving in winter so that might be a bit of a shock”.

Inverclyde has said it will welcome up to 10 families, and the Isle of Bute expects 15 families to arrive in the seaside town of Rothesay in the coming week, where locals plan to use a local church hall as a makeshift mosque.

“There’s a lot of co-ordination, a lot of effort from all sorts of agencies, including ours, in terms of providing the best possible welcome we can”.

Home Secretary Theresa May said earlier that the refugees have undergone “rigorous” checks, following reports that one of the men who carried out Friday’s attacks in Paris travelled along a migrant route.

“Clearly that’s not the view that everybody will share”.

He added: “I would invite those in Europe who try to change the migration agenda we have adopted – I would like to remind them to be serious about this and not to give in to these basic reactions that I do not like”. “I want them to think of Scotland as their home”.

“Then there is a further check that is done once people are referred to the UK. It’s important that people get real hard information about who these people are, where they’ve come from and the traumas they’ve faced”.