Don't blame us for UK border problems, says Albanian PM

The UK should halt discriminating against Albanians to excuse "policy failures", the country's PM has said.

Edi Rama said "rhetoric" blaming his citizens for the UK's transgression and borderline problems ignored the facts.

Albanians present marque up the biggest radical of those crossing the Channel successful tiny boats, pursuing a large summation successful arrivals successful the past 2 years.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman said galore of them were "abusing our modern slavery laws".

UK ministers person said they privation to "fast-track" Albanian arrivals truthful their asylum claims are assessed much quickly.

Last week, MPs were told 12,000 Albanians had arrived successful the UK aft crossing the Channel truthful acold this year, compared to 50 successful 2020.

Of these 10,000 were men - representing 1% of Albania's big antheral population.

In a tweet Mr Rama said: "Targeting Albanians (as immoderate shamefully did erstwhile warring for Brexit) arsenic the origin of Britain's transgression and borderline problems makes for casual rhetoric but ignores hard fact.

"Repeating the aforesaid things and expecting antithetic results is insane."

He said Albanians successful the UK "work hard and wage tax", adding: "[The] UK should combat the transgression gangs of each nationalities and halt discriminating [against] Albanians to excuse argumentation failures."

Mr Rama said helium was "ready to enactment closer" with the UK, but "facts" and "mutual respect" were crucial.

Last week, Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick said the authorities was looking astatine mounting up a "bespoke route" for Albanians to person their migration cases heard much rapidly truthful they could beryllium returned to Albania if their claims were unsuccessful.

On Monday, Ms Braverman agreed with suggestions by Conservative MP Lee Anderson that "Albanian criminals" were leaving a harmless state to travel to the UK.

He said if accommodation successful the UK was not bully capable for them, they could "get connected a dinghy and spell consecutive backmost to France".

The United Nations Human Rights Commissioner Volker Türk said it was "a horrible word" and politicians had to marque definite their connection did not "add substance to the occurrence connected issues that are astir quality beings".

Albania is considered a "safe country" by the UK and is listed arsenic a "designated state" nether UK law, meaning determination is mostly "no superior hazard of persecution" for radical surviving there.

However, it is thought immoderate Albanian migrants marque asylum claims connected the grounds that they person been trafficked to the UK.

Currently Albanians are the nationality astir commonly referred for trafficking enactment successful the UK.

Some 7,627 Albanians claimed asylum successful the UK successful the twelvemonth up to June, much than treble the fig the erstwhile year.

Albanians are little apt to beryllium granted asylum than different nationalities, with the existent complaint astatine 53% compared with 76% for different nationalities.

But the latest figures volition not see astir of those who person arrived this year, arsenic precise fewer of these individuals volition person had their asylum applications considered yet.

In 2022 - successful the months to June - 440 radical were returned to Albania from migration detention centres. Almost each were azygous big men.

Albanians besides represented the highest fig of overseas offenders sent backmost successful the twelvemonth to March 2022.

Last week MPs were told conscionable 4% of those who crossed the Channel successful tiny boats successful 2021 had received decisions connected their asylum claims.

Labour person Sir Keir Starmer accused the authorities of having mislaid control.

Almost 40,000 radical person crossed the Channel successful tiny boats truthful acold successful 2022 - the highest fig since figures began to beryllium collected successful 2018.