Survey reveals 17 per cent of people willing to house a refugee

ks1500440-2 Campaigners at Chichester Cathedral show their support for refugees attempting to come to the UK

Insight agency Opinion Matters, commissioned by eMoov.co.uk, found that 17 per cent of the 1,000 people it surveyed would consider housing a refugee.

The survey asked: ‘If you have a spare room in your property, would you consider allowing refugees to use it for a small time period?’

The results showed that of those homeowners who have a spare room, 14 per cent would accommodate a refugee for between one and three months, two per cent under a month and one per cent for a period of over three months.

Founder and chief executive of eMoov.co.uk, Russell Quirk, said: “Those that receive refugee status in the UK will be provided with somewhere to stay. However, it is estimated some 200,000 additional asylum seekers are still living destitute in the UK.

“The British public have a great tendency to club together in times of need and the sentiment of our research highlights this.

“Although it isn’t as straight forward as taking in half-a-million refugees and housing them in spare rooms, it is humbling to see how many home owners would consider opening their doors to complete strangers out of the kindness of their hearts.”

The growing refugee crisis, which is a huge political issue in Europe, has seen Prime Minister David Cameron come under pressure to act, and for Britain to do their part to accommodate a proportion of the refugees fleeing their war torn countries.

Although this latest research may only highlight a temporary solution to housing those refugees entering the country, a long term solution is still required across Europe.

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