UK should 'give visas to people fleeing climate change disaster'

Think tank suggests a British visa that would let people earn money to help rebuild their lives

Women displaced by flooding in Bentiu, South Sudan, receive monthly food rations from the World Food Programme on February 6. AFP

A think tank has suggested the UK should provide visas for people fleeing natural disasters caused by climate change.

The government should provide safe, legal routes for climate refugees to reach the UK to reduce the effects of related migration on border security, the centre-right think tank Onward said.

Climate change is expected to displace hundreds of millions of people over the next 30 years, with some likely to seek refuge in the UK, including by illegal routes.

In its report Forced to Move, Onward proposed a natural disaster visa scheme to let people either earn money to help rebuild their lives before returning home, or settle permanently if they have no home to return to.

The think tank also proposed a scheme for people in vulnerable countries to be trained in sustainability skills and then stay to help their country adapt to climate change, or move to the UK for a limited time to work on the transition to net-zero emissions.

“A robust immigration system and an enforced border to lower the level of illegal migration into the country is key to maintaining public confidence," the report’s authors said.

“However, new controllable visa schemes for those displaced by climate change to come to the UK would enable the government to help those most in need while protecting the integrity of the immigration system.

“Obviously, the UK does not have the capacity to help all who might be forcibly displaced by climate change over the course of the coming century.

“But, as mentioned throughout this report, the UK has demonstrated time and again that it is willing to play its part to help those most in need.”

Climate change around the world - in pictures

Engineers carry solar panels on to the roof of a property in Barcelona in September 2022. Spain and other Mediterranean countries have generated record amounts of power from wind and solar farms. Bloomberg

Smoke rises from brick factory stacks in Nahrawan, Baghdad. Tackling emissions from heavy industry is crucial to tackling global warming. Reuters

A boy stands near a flock of sheep as a sandstorm approaches in the Syrian countryside of Tabqa. Syria is among the countries most vulnerable and poorly prepared for climate change, which is expected to worsen. AFP

Mountains of smouldering rubbish at the Bhalswa landfill in New Delhi, India. Reuters

Greenpeace activists take part in a climate change protest in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin in May. AP

A man carries water bottles across the heavily polluted Negro River in Manaus, Brazil. About 35 tonnes of rubbish are removed daily from the river. AP

A helicopter drops water on a brush fire in California. Bloomberg

UN climate chief Patricia Espinosa speaks on the opening day of the Bonn climate change conference in Germany. Getty

Activists take part in a demonstration to raise awareness of global warming, during an event to mark World Environment Day in Kolkata. AFP

A helicopter drops water on a bushfire near a residential district in Athens. The fire forced residents to flee. AFP

A gauge measures water levels in the Rio Nambe river, in New Mexico. Ninety per cent of the state is experiencing extreme drought. Getty

Afghan refugees search for recyclable material from heaps of rubbish in Karachi, Pakistan. AP

A climate activist ties herself to the net during the semi-final tennis match between Croatia's Marin Cilic and Norway's Casper Ruud at the French Open in Roland Garros in Paris. AP

A dance group performs at a climate summit in Stockholm, Sweden. Getty

US climate envoy John Kerry talks to a delegate at the Stockholm 50 climate summit. Getty

A boat is stranded during low tide at the Chebayesh marsh in Dhi Qar province, Iraq. Reuters

A woman crosses a polluted river in Dhaka, Bangladesh. EPA

A man walks past an abandoned boat in the bed of a drought-affected reservoir on the outskirts of Sana'a, Yemen. EPA

The report called for more investment in climate adaptation in developing countries, working with private investors to limit the number of people forced to leave their homes by extreme weather events.

This could include encouraging private investment by pooling resources with other governments to take the “first loss” on investment in adaptation measures.

Funding for adaptation measures is likely to be a focus of this year’s Cop28 meeting in Dubai after progress on the UN’s Global Goal on Adaptation at Cop27 in Egypt.

There, the UK announced £200 million ($246 million) in adaptation funding for African nations and promised to treble its total support for climate change adaptation to £1.5 billion by 2025.

Onward found 46 per cent of the public backed greater funding for climate adaptation, compared with 28 per cent who opposed it, but only 29 per cent thought the UK had an obligation to host climate refugees.

“We cannot allow climate-related migration to become the defining crisis of the 21st century," said one of the reports co-authors, Ted Christie-Miller.

“The government needs to act now to build climate resilience in the most vulnerable regions on the planet, and open up safe and legal visa routes for those fleeing environmental disasters.”