Source · Select Committees · Home Affairs Committee
Recommendation 7
7
Accepted
Avoid using language that may jeopardise cooperation agreements with the Albanian government.
Conclusion
The increase in the number and proportion of Albanian nationals arriving in the UK in small boats in 2022 was both sharp and unexpected. It is inevitable that it would attract comment from politicians and others as explanations were sought. That comment has, regrettably, seemed sometimes to single out Albania as a unique cause of asylum and migration problems that go far wider than a single country. The Government in particular should take care not to use language that may jeopardise the success of welcome recent agreements with the Government of Albania, including on co-operation over illegal migration and organised crime and on the return of irregular migrants and convicted criminals to Albania. (Paragraph 45) Next steps
Government Response Summary
The government committed to establishing a joint communication working group with Albanian officials to ensure effective messaging, while also highlighting existing strong relations and operational collaboration.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
We value the Albanian community in the UK and continue to welcome the many Albanians who travel to the UK legally and contribute significantly to British society. The UK shares a strong and broad-based relationship with Albania, as a close NATO Ally and partner in the UN Security Council, central to ours and Europe’s collective security and prosperity. We have experienced excellent operational collaboration with Albanian law enforcement, and we have a mutual readmissions agreement which has already seen over 1,000 Albanian foreign national offenders and others returned on regular scheduled flights. We have established a joint communication working group with Government of Albania officials to ensure that our messaging is effective and achieves the right results within the targeted audiences.