'Little evidence' that Albanians are at risk, need asylum in UK: Report

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - There is no case that a significant number of Albanian nationals are at risk in their country and need to claim asylum in the UK, according to a report released Monday by the Home Affairs Committee.

The cross-party committee of members of parliament, which is responsible for scrutinizing the work of the Home Office and its associated bodies, said Albanians are safe in their country with exceptions.

The report noted that some Albanian citizens making asylum claims "will have been trafficked, and women are disproportionately at risk from this form of crime."

Supporting trafficking victims is an obligation for the government, the committee said, adding these people should only be returned to Albania if appropriate safeguards are in place.

Recalling that more than a quarter of the 45,755 people who crossed the English Channel via small boats last year came from Albania, the report said this was a rise from 800 to 12,301, which is "both unexpected and unexplained."

"Albania is a safe country. It is not at war and is a candidate country to join the European Union. There is no clear basis for the UK to routinely accept thousands of asylum applications from Albanian citizens," it noted.

- 'Government must improve speed of decision making'

Until June 2022, 51% of asylum claims from Albania were initially accepted, said the report, a number "far higher than many comparable European nations."

"Nine countries, including Germany, accepted no asylum claims from Albania. The Home Office must explain why the UK’s acceptance rate was so high, particularly compared to other countries," it added.

Touching on the reasons behind the high number of Albanians willing to claim asylum in the UK, the committee said a key driver of migration from Albania to the UK is economic.

Pointing out that only 325 work visas were granted to Albanian nationals in the first nine months of last year, the report indicated that difficulty in obtaining work in the UK through legal means "could be driving people towards clandestine migration routes."

Home Affairs Committee chairwoman Dame Diana Johnson said the government "must improve" the speed of decision-making and "clear the backlog" as the committee set out in its Channel Crossings report in 2022.

"We expect the Home Office to set out how it plans to achieve this," Johnson added.

In April, the British government announced that over 1,000 Albanian nationals have been returned since a UK-Albania joint communique on tackling illegal migration was signed on Dec. 13.