Member

We also wish to ensure that those who arrive in this country illegally will not be able to stay. We know that effective returns agreements work as a deterrent. When the Conservatives were in government, we cut the number of Albanian illegal migrants coming to the UK by small boat crossings by over 90% thanks to our returns agreement. For instance, in 2022, 12,658 Albanian illegal migrants arrived in the UK by small boat, but that fell to just 924 in 2023 following a landmark returns agreement with Albania.