Gary Lineker due to welcome refugee to live with him 'within weeks'

Gary Lineker has signed up to house a refugee in his Surrey mansion and is reportedly due to welcome his guest in a few weeks’ time.

The Match of the Day host made the arrangement through the charity Refugees at Home, and according to reports, he had been thinking about doing something along those lines for a while.

The former Everton and Tottenham Hotspur striker told the Daily Mirror: “My kids are all grown up so I’ve got plenty of room so if I can help on a temporary basis then I’m more than happy to do so. Why not?”

The 59-year-old announced during a Twitter exchange last month that he had signed up to the Refugees at Home programme, which matches those with a spare room to refugees and asylum seekers who need a place to stay.

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After expressing empathy for migrants crossing the Channel, a Twitter user asked: “Have you housed any yet Gary?” He responded with a screenshot of the email confirmation from Refugees at Home and said: “Not yet.”

The exchange came after the Conservative MP Lee Anderson accused Lineker of “virtue signalling” and suggested the pundit should house “the next boat of illegal immigrants”.

Lineker has been critical of the government’s response to migrants attempting to cross the Channel, last month describing it as “heartless and completely without empathy”.

Refugees at Home said: “We are so grateful for all the host applications that we receive, but are particularly delighted when people with such a high profile sign up to host.”