Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Albanian gangs offer migrants free minibus rides to Channel crossing points

Four in 10 migrants arriving in Britain are from Albania. 

Albanian gangs offer migrants free minibus rides to Channel crossing points

To lure migrants to cross the English Channel, Albanian gangs are offering free minibus rides from southern Europe to the northern French coast, The Telegraph reported.

The gangs promote the 'service' on TikTok with pictures of the minibuses, saying that the trip is '100 per cent secure'. 


An advert featured a video from behind the driver of a minibus as it goes along the road at night saying: “Boys just started the journey to Dunkirk. Thanx boys. God helps you. Hurry up. Can get info DM”.

The adverts offered a journey from Shkoder in northern Albania to Dunkirk. Reports said that later they will be managed by trafficking gangs in France, often run by Iraqi Kurds. Sources said that the fee charged is £5,000 per person to make the 22-mile journey across the Channel in a small boat. 

Meanwhile, the number of migrants arrived in Britain in small boats hit a record for a single day on Monday (22).

According to the defence ministry, 1,295 people in 27 boats were intercepted after making the crossing from the European mainland on Monday. The figure surpasses the previous daily record of 1,185 set last November.

The total number of migrants reached in the UK has reached 22,500 this year, more than double the rate in 2021 at the same point. It was earlier reported that four in 10 migrants arriving in Britain are Albanians. 

The Telegraph report added that home secretary Priti Patel will announce new security measures to tackle the crisis soon.

“Social media posts used by criminal people smugglers promoting illegal crossings are totally unacceptable. This Government is already tackling this deceitful online propaganda with law enforcement, social media companies and overseas governments," she was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

In another development, France said it was owed more than £8.4 million by Britain to cover the costs of the 800 officers and air surveillance deployed to tackle migrants on the beaches. However, a fresh deal with France to follow last year’s £54m package has yet to be agreed.

Tory MPs have demanded fast-track removal of illegal Albanian migrants, as there is a deportation agreement with the Balkan state. They want a deal with France to only pay on results and are urged to prepare to derogate from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

Under an agreement struck in April, Britain will send tens of thousands of migrants who arrive on its shores illegally to Rwanda.

The policy will be the subject of a legal challenge in London's High Court in early September when a coalition of human rights groups and a trade union will argue that the Rwanda policy is unworkable and unethical.

An estimated 200 more migrants reached the UK on Tuesday (23), taking the total for August to around 6,500, the second highest monthly total and close to the record of 6,878 in last November.

In 2021, 28,526 people were detected arriving on small boats - with the highest number from Iran followed by Iraq, Eritrea, and Syria.

More For You

Sunita-Williams-Reuters

Sunita Williams was part of the SpaceX Crew-9 mission and had been stranded in space for over nine months. (Photo: Reuters)

Reuters)

India looks amazing from space, says Sunita Williams

NASA astronaut Sunita Williams described India as "amazing" from space and expressed her intention to visit her "father's home country" to share her experiences on space exploration.

Speaking at a press conference on Monday, she responded to a question about how India appeared from space and the possibility of collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

Keep ReadingShow less
british-muslims-iStock

The study noted that this identification was not due to any doctrinal obligation but was influenced by the perception that many Muslims do not feel fully accepted as British. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Majority of British Muslims identify by faith first, study finds

A STUDY by the Institute for the Impact of Faith in Life (IIFL) has found that most British Muslims identify primarily with their religion rather than their nationality.

The research, based on a survey of 815 British Muslim adults by Whitestone Insight, revealed that 71 per cent of respondents identified as Muslim first, while 27 per cent identified as British, English, or Scottish first.

Keep ReadingShow less
Car Tax Changes: EV Owners Now Required to Pay for the First Time

Owners of electric vehicles registered on or after 1 April 2025 will pay £10 for the first year, followed by the standard VED rate of £195 from the second year. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Car tax changes take effect: EV owners to pay for first time

FROM today, 1 April 2025, electric cars, vans, and motorcycles in the UK will be subject to Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) for the first time.

The change, introduced in the 2022 Autumn Statement by former Conservative Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, aims to make motoring taxation fairer.

Keep ReadingShow less
scotland-minimum-wages-iStock

Full-time workers on the National Living Wage will receive an annual pay increase of £1,400 in real terms. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Wage increase takes effect for thousands of workers in Scotland

HUNDREDS of thousands of workers in Scotland will see a pay increase as new National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage rates take effect from Tuesday.

The changes will benefit approximately 220,000 people, according to STV News.

Keep ReadingShow less
uk-energy-bill-iStock

Water bills, energy prices, and council tax are rising, while the minimum wage has also increased (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

April bill increases put financial strain on single parents

A RANGE of essential household bills are increasing from April, with Citizens Advice warning that single parents will be among the hardest hit.

Water bills, energy prices, and council tax are rising, while the minimum wage has also increased, BBC reported.

Keep ReadingShow less