UK slammed for offering just 300 Ukrainian visa applications despite Russia invasion creating 2 million refugees

The UK Home Office has been slammed after admitting that just 300 Ukrainian refugees have been granted visas to the country despite Russia's invasion of the Eastern European country leading to around 2 million being displaced.

It said that some 17,700 visa applications had been started, with a further 9,000 applications yet to be completed - despite Poland welcoming 1.2 million Ukrainian refugees into its borders and Moldova hosting 4,000 per 100,000 residents, according to the BBC.

Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper slammed the government's processing of visas as "shockingly low and painfully slow".

Ukrainians applying for the scheme have raised concerns over the alleged complexity of the scheme, with some reportedly being blocked from finishing applications due to insufficient paperwork. Issues were made worse when the online processing system crashed.

Home Secretary Priti Patel's claim that she had "surged a Home Office team" to assist Ukrainians attempting to reach the UK from Calais.

This was contradicted by some on the ground, who said they had been turned back by officials in the French coastal city.

The number of visas granted falls well behind the 1,800 already processed by Ireland - with a population around 14 times smaller than the UK's -  and some 500,000 by Poland.

On Tuesday, UK Defence Minister Ben Wallace conceded that the process has "not been quick enough", however assured BBC Radio 4 listeners that changes would be made.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has sparked the biggest war in Europe and the continent's largest refugee crisis, causing more than two million people to flee the country, according to the UN.