Big Society project penalised: heartless penny-pinching

When the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear reactor happened in 1986, around 60-70% of the radioactive material released settled on neighbouring Belarus, which is still contaminated by radiation.

The future of the smaller branches of the Chernobyl Children’s Project , set up to arrange regenerative breaks for youngsters living there, is threatened by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office`s announcement that free UK visas for Chernobyl Children will end in March 2013.

£86 per child would be added to the cost of bringing them to the UK, placing a heavy burden on charities already struggling to raise funds. This will mean that less children come to the UK for recuperative breaks and possible closure of smaller charities.

All other governments in the EU will continue to grant gratis visas as they acknowledge the important work done helping children living with the after effects of radiation by boosting their immune systems & improving their health.

Please sign the petition: http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/37945

If the link does not work, go to http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk page 3.