Andy Slaughter, the Labour MP for Shepherds Bush, has attended the meeting of the Hammersmith Refugee Forum to mark national Refugee Week.

The Refugee Forum was held at Hammersmith Town Hall, and included a fair and a meeting for refugees and members of refugee advocacy groups. Representatives of over a dozen groups, representing refugees from areas as diverse as Somalia, Bosnia and parts of the Middle East were in attendance.

Andy Slaughter said, “It’s important that refugees fleeing persecution, suffering and violence across the globe aren’t met with indifference and ignorance when they arrive in a safe haven.

“That’s why I’m pleased to support Refugee Week, and the Refugee Forum. This constructive meeting showed many of the practical aspects of living as a refugee in Britain today, and I will ensure that this informs my work in Parliament on this important issue.

The forum comes in the wake of the controversial comments made by Cllr Lucy Ivimy, the portfolio holder for housing on Conservative-led Hammersmith and Fulham Council, who recently said that “foreign born” residents need to be “educated…to tell people not to throw stuff out of the window” of blocks of flats, adding, “I know that in India throwing rubbish out of a window and total disregard for the cleanliness of a public area is normal behaviour”.

Andy Slaughter added, “I hope that this will be just the beginning of a more compassionate and mature approach to issues of community cohesion, especially given Cllr Ivimy’s recent crass and unwarranted comments. I think we should try to make progress on refugee and asylum issues locally”.