Starmer demands plan for Afghans eligible for evacuation left behind

Keir Starmer has demanded that the government bring forward a plan for people who were eligible for evacuation from Afghanistan as the country fell to the Taliban but who did not manage to board a flight over the past few days.

In an interview with Sky News this afternoon, the Labour leader said there would be “serious questions” for the government to answer regarding the situation but that the “immediate priority” is the safety of troops and those left behind.

“I pay tribute to the courage and bravery of all of those who have worked, particularly on the ground at Kabul airport, in the most horrific of circumstances to have got thousands of people out to safety,” he said today.

“But it is a dark day for those in Afghanistan – particularly those who have not managed to get out. That includes people on the ARUP scheme, which is the UK protection scheme. These are people that are eligible to come out because they’ve worked alongside us on the frontline in Afghanistan

“Some of those individuals have not had their claims processed in time, some of them were not called forward, haven’t managed to get through the barriers and we need an urgent plan for them – because they’re very much at risk.

“And what I want to see is that urgent plan. We need to keep in contact with them, we need to give them advice and support and the government needs to show what safe and legal passages there are out of there.

“In due course, there’s going to be some searing questions from the government about the lack of preparation but the immediate concern is those that have been left, who urgently need that protection, that support, right now.”

Kabul airport is being defended and run by the US army, which has 5,800 troops on the ground and the help of around 1,000 UK troops, as evacuations continue. Ministers have said UK personnel will leave before the US withdraws.

US-led evacuations continued today following two bomb attacks on Thursday afternoon, which killed at least 95 people. Government ministers have said the UK is in the final stages of its evacuation and is expected to end in a few hours.

British troops are already leaving the capital. Ben Wallace admitted some people will not get out earlier today, and said personnel will “continue to find a few people in the crowds where we can but overall the main processing has now closed”.

Starmer has rejected that the 20-year military intervention in Afghanistan had been a “failure”, emphasising successes in the education of women and girls and the prevention of terrorist attack in the UK.

Asked whether the situation represented a failure of consecutive governments, he said: “No, I don’t think anybody could look at 20 years of educating girls and women in Afghanistan and say that’s a failure – quite the contrary.

“I don’t think anybody could look at the fact that in the last 20 years there haven’t been successful terrorist plots conducted and planned from Afghanistan and say that’s a failure.

“Obviously, what we need to do now is try to safeguard those gains as we go forward and that is the absolute priority. But today my concern is about those eligible people on the ARUP scheme – some nationals and wider groups – who haven’t got out of the country on these flights and desperately need our advice and support.”

The Taliban returned to power last week, almost 20 years after the invasion of Afghanistan launched by the West with the objective of ousting the group and preventing it from harbouring al-Qaeda following the 9/11 attacks in the US.

He described the success of the Taliban as a “huge setback, regionally and globally” and said there would need to be “serious thought given to what the policy in Afghanistan is” over the coming weeks and months.

Asked whether there should be an inquiry into the handling of the situation, he said: “In due course, there are going to be many, many questions that have to be answered in relation to what’s gone on. We’ve know for 18 months that this moment would come and there’s been a lack of preparation by the government.”

Starmer described a “strong and special relationship” between the UK and the US, adding: “Obviously, this evacuation and the way that we’ve dealt with Afghanistan has been a particular difficulty, but the relationship will endure.

“What I want to see from our Prime Minister is leadership. You know, we’re chair of the G7, we’re a member NATO, we’re a member of the security council. I want leadership, global leadership on this issue.”