According to the Immigration Minister, Albanians should not be allowed to claim asylum in the UK.
Robert Jenrick stated that such people should not be allowed to claim asylum because they come from a “demonstrably secure” country.
He said that current levels of migration to the UK were not sustainable.
The Home Office refused to comment on a Sunday Times report that claimed ministers were working on legislation that would ban illegal entry by asylum seekers from ever setting foot in the UK.
Home secretary Suella Braverman was said to have encouraged Rishi Sonak to back plans to detain every illegal immigrant upon arrival.
Conservative MPs are putting intense pressure on the government to address the problem of people traffickers using small boats for ferrying migrants across the Channel.
Over a third of 33,000 Channel migrants arrived in Albania during the first nine months this year. Jenrick stated that they are now the “number one priority”.
Continue reading: “It’s not a life here”: The Albanians are determined to live in the UK
Last week, Mr Sunak met with Edi Rama , the Albanian Prime Minister and they discussed closing “loopholes” that prevent the return of asylum seekers who have failed.
Rama stated that the UK should stop blaming Albanians in the migrant crisis. He also said that the UK must stop using Albanian immigrants to “excuse” policy failures.
However, Jenrick stated to GB News that Albania is a safe country. It is difficult to imagine how an Albanian could be allowed to claim asylum in the UK.
“We have a return agreement that was signed one year ago and already a thousand Albanians have returned. We are exploring what we can do.
“We are also following the diplomatic channels.”
Jenrick warned that illegal migration would be a problem for many years. Ministers agreed that the overall level of immigration was too high.
eyewitness: Migrants set up camp in squalid conditions and wait for boats from the Channel.
Students from abroad use universities as a ‘backdoor’
He stated that “we can’t have one million people coming into the country and net migration of half million in a single calendar year – it’s just too difficult.”
He said that one area was “ripe to reform”: the rules regarding student visas and the maximum number of dependents they could bring into the country while studying.
He said, “What I worry about is that there are people coming here to universities as a backdoor route to bringing their families into Britain and staying for a long time.”
This is a very popular route to the UK for many people. This is a major driver of net migration.”
He stated that they are also committed to reducing the “huge backlog” in asylum cases. He suggested that they could have a “lighter touch” approach with people coming from countries with “extremely high grant rate”.