Poland drafts bill to restore Ukrainian refugee aid

Deputy Senate Speaker Magdalena Biejat said her Left party is drafting a bill after some benefits were restricted when President Karol Nawrocki vetoed a law governing support for Ukrainians. She said the Senate lacked time to prepare an alternative, forcing lawmakers into compromises that removed help from the most vulnerable.

Biejat said the proposed bill follows consultations with non-governmental organizations and would aim to restore some of the cut aid, while keeping support for Ukrainians who cannot work, including access to medical care and other essential protections. She also argued that Ukrainian workers contribute materially to the Polish economy through taxes that help fund pensions.

The debate lands as Poland absorbs the wider economic costs of Russia’s war in Ukraine. The country’s statistics office has estimated the conflict has reduced GDP by about €113 billion, including €29 billion in corporate-sector losses and €67.5 billion in household losses, underscoring why refugee policy remains tied to broader economic strain.

For markets, the immediate impact is more political than financial, but any widening or narrowing of welfare support can shape consumer demand, labor participation and budget debates. The next test is whether the Left’s bill can gather enough backing to reverse at least part of the cutbacks without reopening the standoff that followed the veto.