Norwegian municipalities will this year be equipped to receive 30,000 Ukrainian refugees. The government will now use significant funds to increase the number of reception places around the country.
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Thus, it is expected that Norway will receive a total of 35,000 refugees this year – seven times more than the municipalities usually settle during a normal year.
– We see that up to ten million people are on the run. Most internally in Ukraine, but 3, 6 million are now fleeing the country, according to the UN. This is a quantity we have not seen since World War II, says Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre (Labor Party) during a press conference on Friday.
– It is a formidable task to have to readjust a little into the year on the seven-gait, and that is not the end line either. No one really knows what that number will be, he adds.
In order for the municipalities to be able to receive the large number of refugees who arrive in a short time, the government will consider making changes and adjustments to laws and regulations.
– We must prepare for the fact that we can get a new neighbor, a new classmate, a new player on the football team, says Støre.
On Thursday, police said that at least 9,000 refugees from Ukraine so far Norway has arrived. Half of them are not yet registered.
– We plan to receive more refugees than we have ever done, says Minister of Labor and Social Inclusion Marte Mjøs Persen.
She emphasizes that the government will also increase funding for volunteers who contribute to the inclusion and integration of Ukrainian refugees.
Will set aside five billion kroner
– Today, it has been decided in the King in Council that the expenses can be increased by up to NOK 5 billion to acquire more reception places. It will ensure that we are prepared for the growing refugee crisis, says Minister of Justice and Contingency Planning Emilie Enger Mehl.
The Ministry of Finance will present a proposal to the Storting next Friday. At the same time, the Minister of Justice acknowledges that the reception system has challenges as they are today:
– After the asylum crisis in 2015, our capacity for receiving and registering refugees was reduced and centralized to Råde. It is a system that has not been dimensioned for the large number of refugees we now see.
– I understand that people are frustrated with the wait, and that it takes some time. But in a short time a lot has been done. The police have established 18 registration points in eight different police districts and are working intensively on this, says Mehl.
–She also emphasizes that it is important that every refugee from Ukraine is registered, despite that Ukrainians have now been given collective protection, which means that the UDI does not assess each case individually.
The Minister of Justice points out, among other things, that people on the run are all the more vulnerable to crime:
– The police are aware that organized criminal networks in Europe disseminate genuine ID documents to third-country nationals who want to enter the Schengen area illegally. We also know from previous experience that some will take advantage of the situation to acquire residence on the wrong basis, says Mehl.
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