Albania's prime minister has accused the UK Home Secretary of ethnic stereotyping after she highlighted Albanian families while unveiling major changes to Britain's asylum system. Shabana Mahmood told MPs that roughly 700 Albanian families were living in taxpayer-funded accommodation despite having had their asylum claims refused, and argued the government must remove people who have no right to remain. She used her Commons speech to describe the asylum system as out of control and unfair, warning that failure to act could feed public anger and hatred. As part of the package of reforms announced, refugee status would become time-limited, the period before someone can seek permanent settlement would rise from five years to 20, and families with children who lack legal status could be removed. The plan also includes tighter routes to refugee recognition alongside new, capped legal pathways for migration. Prime Minister Edi Rama reacted sharply on social media, saying it was unacceptable for a senior UK minister to single out Albanians and to echo rhetoric often used by the populist far right. He described the figure of 700 families as negligible compared with Britain’s post-Brexit challenges and stressed that Albanians are net contributors to the UK economy, with relatively low levels of benefit receipt. Rama pointed to official data showing the UK has returned more than 13,000 people to Albania since a returns agreement was signed in 2022, calling the arrangement one of Europe’s most effective partnerships on illegal migration. He added that policy should not be driven by ethnic stereotyping. The row follows a series of earlier clashes between Rama and British politicians. In May he rebuffed proposals for UK "return hubs" when Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer visited Tirana and has previously accused UK politicians of stigmatising Albanians. He also publicly challenged claims by Reform UK leader Nigel Farage about Albanian criminality, dismissing those figures as wildly inaccurate. Mahmood’s reforms come as the UK pursues a difficult balance between removing failed asylum seekers and creating lawful routes for migration, amid ongoing talks about sending some failed applicants abroad and wider efforts to curb irregular arrivals.
