City of Sanctuary

Questions to the Mayor of London – answered at on 24 March 2022.

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Photo of Hina Bokhari Hina Bokhari Liberal Democrat

What active steps are you taking to encourage local authorities in London to become fully accredited and active Cities of Sanctuary?

Photo of Sadiq Khan Sadiq Khan Mayor of London

The GLA works closely with London boroughs to support efforts to welcome migrants, refugees and people seeking asylum. This includes the Asylum Welcome Programme, aiming to strengthen service design for people seeking asylum; the Children in Care Programme which embeds children’s specialist immigration advice in social services teams; and the Hong Kong Programme which funds local authorities to undertake local engagement with new arrivals under the British National Overseas visa route.

The GLA also hosts the London Strategic Migration Partnership which facilitates collaboration between central and local government and civil society. There is an established ‘core group’ which oversees work on urgent humanitarian crises at a senior level, jointly owned with London Councils.

I have not taken direct steps to promote Cities of Sanctuary but continue to deliver on the core principles of my Social Integration strategy, which makes clear that we all need to work together to welcome new arrivals and support them to become active citizens who are connected to their local communities.