Albanian Ambassador Challenges UK Narrative on 2022 Migrant Surge

Albanian Ambassador to the United Kingdom Uran Ferizi released a 10-page report challenging the narrative surrounding the 2022 surge of Albanian migrants crossing the English Channel. Using data from the UK Home Office and the University of Oxford, Ferizi argued that right-wing politicians and media outlets have maintained an unhinged and hysterical fixation on a crisis that has largely ended.

The report notes that while 12,658 Albanians arrived in 2022, they represented only 1% of overall long-term immigration for that year, and most of that group has since left the UK. Ferizi linked the irregular migration to restrictive visa policies, noting a 65.5% approval rate for Albanians compared to 90% for other Western Balkan countries, which he suggested pushed vulnerable people toward human traffickers.

Ferizi specifically accused Reform UK of engaging in Albanian-spotting and criticized the Daily Telegraph for demonizing the Albanian community by publishing unadjusted crime statistics.