Question to the Home Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the decisions by the governments of Canada, Finland and Sweden to broaden their definition of refugee to include people affected by climate change; and what plans they have, if any, to amend their definition similarly.

The UK has a proud record of providing protection for people who need it, in accordance with our international obligations under the Refugee Convention and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Every asylum claim is carefully considered on its individual merits by assessing all the evidence provided by the claimant against a background of country information from a wide range of credible sources.

Refugee status is granted when someone has a well-founded fear of persecution under the Refugee Convention for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion. They must show that they cannot seek protection from the authorities in their country and cannot reasonably move to another part of their country to avoid persecution.

Climate change is not covered in the Refugee Convention as grounds for a well-founded fear of persecution and we do not have any plans to broaden this definition. We recognise however, that climate change will increasingly become a significant factor in driving migration. Evidence shows that climate extremes and environmental degradation are often amplifiers of other principal migration drivers. For those who do not have a well-founded fear of persecution for a convention reason, we consider whether they are at risk of serious harm and are in need of protection on humanitarian grounds. This ensures that we do not remove anyone who faces persecution or serious harm on return to their country of origin. If protection is not required, we consider if there are any family or private life reasons, medical reasons, or other exceptional circumstances that would warrant a grant of leave.

Decisions to migrate can have several causes and we regularly engage with our international partners in other countries on this important issue. We recognise the importance of providing people with options for sustainable livelihoods that do not compel them to migrate. As climate change increases its impact on migration it is imperative that efforts are redoubled to limit warming and to help vulnerable people to adapt to change. Climate change is a reality that requires greater and more coordinated adaptation and mitigation planning.