Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said Prime Minister Keir Starmer has shown “great interest” in an Italy-Albania migration deal, and the UK has pledged to contribute £4 million to support Starmer's controversial crackdown on illegal immigration.
Speaking at a press conference in Rome, the Prime Minister agreed with Mr Meloni and stressed the importance of the UK-Italy relationship.
But he suggested he was more interested in Italy's strategy to stop migrants entering the country than the deal with Albania, which is just weeks away from being finalized.
The pair made immigration a central topic of discussion during Starmer's visit, and were pictured joking and laughing in the gardens of Rome's Villa Doria Pamphili.
Millions of pounds that the UK will send to Italy will be donated to the Rome Process, an Italian government project to tackle the root causes of illegal migration.
“No country can effectively dismantle human trafficking networks alone,” Meloni said at a joint press conference, and added that the two countries' law enforcement agencies were looking at whether there were “more systematic ways” for them to work together.
Looking back on the talks with Albania over the agreement, Meloni said that “the British government is very interested in this agreement” and that the two countries “want to strengthen the very good relations between Italy and the UK” and “strengthen cooperation with the EU, of course respecting the post-Brexit rules.”
Starmer said on Monday that learning from Italy marked a “return to British pragmatism” and said Meloni's “remarkable progress” in reducing the numbers of illegal immigrants was due to her “upstream work tackling the roots of the problem”.
“We are pragmatists first and foremost. When we face a challenge, we discuss different approaches with our friends and allies and see what will work. That's the approach we took today. It was a very productive day.”
A Downing Street spokesman said: “The Prime Minister reflected on his visit this morning to the National Coordination Centre in Rome, accompanied by the UK's newly appointed Border Force Commander, Martin Hewitt. They agreed to take immediate steps to strengthen cross-border cooperation, learning from Italy's successful example, which reduced illegal migration by 60% last year through upstream efforts and enforcement.”
The prime minister expressed concern about the treatment of people stranded in the Tunisian desert after trying to reach Italian shores. His spokesman said: “Obviously we take this very seriously and we look forward to working more closely with upstream countries.”
“The principles we follow in every operation are that it is feasible, affordable and in accordance with international humanitarian law.
“But it's vital we stop people from undertaking these journeys. Too many deaths have occurred in the Mediterranean and the Channel.”
Italy has been accused of violating the human rights of asylum seekers in relation to its deal with Albania, a claim Meloni denied, saying: “Frankly, I don't know what human rights violations you are talking about.”
“I find this accusation completely unfounded.”
Starmer also announced Italian investment in the UK would reach nearly £500m, with Leonardo, one of Italy's leading aerospace and security companies, investing £435m in its Yeovil facility, and steelmaker Marchegalia investing £50m in Sheffield to build a new Clean Steel electric arc furnace, creating 50 new jobs.
It comes on the same day that Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced a £75 million budget to increase border force recruitment and tackle smugglers.
The funding injection is aimed at introducing new technology and improving the capabilities of UK Border Force.
“Criminal organizations are undermining border security, putting lives at risk and getting away with it,” Cooper said.
“With cutting-edge technology and enhanced intelligence capabilities, we are able to use every tool at our disposal to root out this vile trade.”
Funds originally allocated to pay for the previous administration’s Rwanda Programme will be reallocated to fund these programmes.
