Keir Starmer eyeing Italy's migration tactics amid UK boat crisis

British Prime Minister considers Giorgia Meloni's approach as Channel crossings surge and asylum policy scrutinised

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has held talks with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on tackling irregular migration. EPA

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has shown an “interest” in Italy's deal with Albania to tackle illegal migration.

On Monday, Mr Starmer met Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Rome as he promised a “new era” of international enforcement to dismantle gangs to “protect our shores and bring order to the asylum system”.

It comes a day after eight people died after their overcrowded boat capsized in the Channel, bringing the total number of people who have lost their lives this year trying to reach British shores to 46. More than 1,000 people made the perilous journey in small boats over the weekend.

Ms Meloni told a press conference that Mr Starmer was “very interested” in Italy's initiative to send asylum seekers to Albania while they are being processed which is due to start soon.

However, Mr Starmer said he was presently more focused on Italy’s work preventing migrants from reaching the country than its Albania deal, as he claimed his government had returned to “British pragmatism” on migration and repeated his vow to “smash the smuggling gangs”.

Mr Starmer said Italy’s reduction in unauthorised migrant numbers was “more likely attributable” to the work that Ms Meloni “has done upstream” in preventing migrants leaving their home countries, referring to deals with Tunisia to improve its security.

“I have always made the argument that preventing people leaving their country in the first place is far better than trying to deal with those that have arrived in any of our countries,” he said. “I was very interested in that. In a sense, today was a return – if you like – to British pragmatism.

“We are pragmatists first and foremost. When we see a challenge we discuss with our friends and allies the different approaches that are being taken, look at what works, and that is the approach we have taken today, and it has been a very productive day.”

Italy has signed an agreement with Albania to open two centres where migrants would be housed while their asylum claims are processed. It will fund and manage the centres, which will be capable of accommodating up to 3,000 migrants who have arrived on Italian shores by boat.

Migrants with rejected asylum claims would be sent back to their country of origin, whereas those with accepted applications will be granted entry to Italy. It is a key difference from the former UK government's Rwanda scheme, whereby migrants sent to the East African nation could never have settled in Britain irrespective of the outcome of their claim.

Mr Starmer has faced growing pressure to tackle the small boats crisis, which saw about 800 migrants cross the Channel on Saturday to the UK, the second-highest figure since the start of the year. Last month riots rocked the UK due to an undercurrent of unrest surrounding illegal immigration which mosques and immigration centres attacked.

In Italy, Mr Starmer visited the National Co-ordination Centre for Migration to discuss the country's approach to the issue, which has seen a 60 per cent drop in irregular arrivals by sea, his office said.

“You’ve made remarkable progress working with countries along migration routes as equals to address the drivers of migration at source and to tackle the gangs,” he told Ms Meloni.

“And as a result, irregular arrivals to Italy by sea are down 60 per cent since 2022 so I’m pleased that we’re deepening our co-operation here, led on the UK side by our new border security commander, who has been with me today here in Italy at the co-ordination centre this morning to share intelligence, share tactics, shut down smuggler routes and smash the gangs.”

The newly appointed chief of the UK's new Border Security Command, Martin Hewitt, accompanied Mr Starmer during his trip.

Earlier, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper hinted at a British interest in the Italy-Albania deal, and insisted it was not the same as the Rwanda plan. “It has UNHCR oversight, so it is being monitored to make sure that it meets international standards,” she said during the morning media round.

Responding to criticism of Italy’s migration policy, the Home Secretary added: “We’ve always had a history of working with governments that have different political parties that are not aligned.

“That is a sensible thing for any government to do. We have to work with democratically elected governments, particularly those who are our nearest neighbours, and particularly those where we have shared challenges that we have to face.”

Ms Meloni, leader of the far-right Brothers of Italy party and whose country is on the front line of the EU's migration crisis, has already been in discussions over how to improve joint operations. She said no nation on its own can tackle the “tentacles” of the powerful smuggling gangs and is looking at how intelligence agencies can work together to tackle the traffickers.

Besides Albania, Ms Meloni's government has also signed a deal with Tunisia granting aid in exchange for greater efforts to stop Italy-bound migrants who leave the North African country and cross the Mediterranean.

Italy has also renewed a controversial deal with the UN-backed Libyan government in Tripoli, dating from 2017, in which Rome provides training and funding to the Libyan coastguard in order to stem departures of migrants or return to Libya those already at sea. Human rights groups say the policy pushes thousands of migrants back to Libya to face torture and abuse under arbitrary detention.

Ms Meloni said concerns about human rights violations in the Italy-Albania migrant deal were “completely groundless”.

Since the start of the year, migrant arrivals to Italy by sea have dropped markedly, according to the interior ministry. Across all the EU borders the number of migrants crossing has dropped by 39 per cent, according to border agency Frontex, however experts say this is due to migrants changing their routes.

While the Balkan and Central Mediterranean migration routes saw flows fall significantly by 77 per cent and 64 per cent respectively, the West African and Eastern land border routes recorded sharp increases, of 123 per cent and 193 per cent respectively. Crossings are up 13 per cent over the Channel this year, Frontex said.