Sunak: Our plan to curb illegal immigration is yielding results

2023-06-05 15:50:34, Kosova & Bota CNA

Sunak: Our plan to curb illegal immigration is yielding results

Prime Minister of Britain, Rishi Sunak

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Monday that his plan to stop illegal immigration is paying off.

Speaking to the media in Dover, Britain, Mr Sunak said the number of migrants trying to cross the English Channel in small boats had fallen by 20 per cent since his government proposed the bill to curb illegal immigration.

Mr. Sunak said that after the agreement with the Albanian government to stop illegal immigration, in the last six months, the return of 1,800 Albanian migrants has become possible, while the number of those trying to enter Britain by boat has dropped drastically.

Britain has long tried to curb illegal immigration, but Mr Sunak is keen to show that his plan to reach deals with other European countries to reduce the number of migrants and toughen his government's measures to this phenomenon, it can give results.

"The message I want to convey today is that our plan has begun to yield results. 5 months after I announced the plan, illegal crossings have fallen by 20 percent compared to a year ago," said Rishi Sunak, Prime Minister of Britain.

The British Prime Minister said that thanks to the agreement reached with Tirana in December of last year, the British authorities are returning more immigrants to Albania, while the number of Albanian immigrants who entered Britain in small boats this year has dropped by 90. percent.

"In December, I reached an agreement with the Albanian government, because last year, almost a third of the immigrants who entered Britain in small boats came from this safe country in Europe. In six months we have enabled the return of 1800 Albanian migrants . Previously, one in 5 asylum requests came from Albanian immigrants, now the ratio is 1 to 50. And what are the results for this? So far, during this year, the number of Albanian immigrants who arrived in small boats has dropped by almost 90 percent," said Mr. Sunak.

Mr Sunak called on the British parliament to pass a new bill to stop illegal immigration, which would see almost all asylum seekers who arrive in Britain illegally in small boats from the English Channel detained without bail. , before going back to their place.

The bill is expected to be reviewed in the Upper House of Parliament, where lawmakers may try to soften some of the bill's provisions.

Under the bill, any immigrant who enters Britain illegally is barred from seeking asylum and the authorities are given the right to detain and deport refugees and migrants. Once deported they will never be allowed to set foot in Britain again. The British government says the bill will curb attempts by tens of thousands of people to cross the La Mashni canal in small boats in the hope of entering Britain.

But critics, including the United Nations Refugee Agency, have described the British government's legal package as unenforceable, while there have also been accusations that it is in violation of international law./ VOA