Source · Select Committees · Home Affairs Committee
Recommendation 1
1
Accepted
Paragraph: 1
Little evidence suggests Albanian citizens routinely require political asylum in the UK from government actions.
Conclusion
Albania is a safe country and we have seen little evidence that its citizens should need to seek political asylum in the UK or elsewhere as a result of the actions of its Government. We saw no reason why the UK should routinely accept asylum applications from Albanian citizens, as is the case with many EU countries, other than in specific cases such as those that arise from trafficking.
Government Response Summary
The government agrees Albania is a safe country, stating it has issued new guidance for caseworkers, designated Albania as a safe state, and is expediting Albanian claims with dedicated staff. The Illegal Migration Act will further prevent illegal entrants from accessing the asylum system.
Paragraph Reference:
1
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
Asylum policies and systems across countries vary significantly, with different local operational practice (such as prioritisation of different case types). Grant rates should not be read as a measure of the “generosity” of one system vs. another as this depends on the nature of the claims themselves. Some EU countries have a different approach to dealing with migration from the Balkans, including allowing migrants to apply for low-skilled work. We have issued new guidance for caseworkers making clear that Albania is a safe country. Albania is listed as a ‘designated state’ in Section 94(4) of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002. When refusing a protection and/or human rights claim from a person entitled to reside in Albania (or any other designated state), the Secretary of State must ‘certify’ the claim unless satisfied that the claim is not clearly unfounded. Any decision which is ‘certified’ will not have a right of appeal against the decision. To speed up the removal of Albanians with no right to be in the UK, we changed our approach and secured a joint communique with Albania as outlined by the Prime Minister on 13 December 2022. The two governments continue to keep the impact of the agreed measures and their implementation under close review. of our system we’ve seen so far, including by: • expediting claims from Albanians by using over 100 dedicated staff • regularly updating and issuing new guidance for caseworkers making it clear • working closely with and continually seeking assurances from Albania allowing us to return people with confidence that they will continue to provide the necessary protections for genuine modern slavery victims, in line with our international obligations. In addition, the Illegal Migration Act changes the law so that people who come to the UK illegally will not be able to stay. Instead, they will be detained and then promptly removed, either to their home country or a safe third country. People who enter the UK illegally will not have access to our asylum system. The Act gives us the power to prevent people who come to the UK through illegal and unnecessary journeys from abusing modern slavery safeguards to block their removal.