No, Keir Starmer has not signed a deal to take 'illegal migrants' from Italy

What's the claim?

A viral post on X (formerly Twitter) shared on July 13, 2024, claimed U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has signed up for a European Union refugee program, which will lead to the country taking "illegal migrants landing in Italy." The post states the U.K. will have to take migrants from the Mediterranean and those arriving via the English Channel. The post further claims the U.K. did not even sign up for this while in the EU. An archived link to the post is here.

Several users on Facebook also shared a screenshot of the X post with captions criticizing the purported decision. Archived links to the posts are here, here, and here. 

Screenshots of posts claiming Starmer has signed up to an EU Refugee program that will lead to the U.K. taking its "fair share" of illegal migrants landing in Italy. (Source: Facebook/Modified by Logically Facts)

"Illegal migrants" in the posts refers to asylum seekers, refugees, and migrants coming to the U.K. The refugee crisis has been a significant issue in the U.K. and Europe as people fleeing conflict and poor living conditions have been arriving in Europe without clearance or processing.

Our investigation found no reported evidence about Starmer signing such a deal with the EU. Further, Labour's policy on migrants and cooperation with the EU regarding asylum seekers aims to increase border security and stop the smuggling of migrants on small boats to the country.

What we found

We found no report of any such deal or the U.K. signing any such agreement on the EU Agency for Asylum website. No media reports detailed the signing of any such deal either.

Labour's immigration and border policy with regards to small boats and asylum seekers involves "prioritizing strong border security" and delivering a "properly managed and controlled asylum system which returns people who have no right to be here." Labour's policy also mentions speeding up "returns to safe countries, with more caseworkers and a new Returns and Enforcement Unit."

None of the bills proposed by the Starmer-led Labour government that came to power this month refer to taking in more refugees.

After Starmer took over as prime minister, the only policy change so far on illegal migration was the scrapping of the Rwanda asylum plan, a policy proposed by the Conservative government in April 2022. It said that asylum seekers entering the U.K. illegally could be sent to Rwanda and have their asylum claims processed there. However, due to legal challenges, no asylum seeker was sent to Rwanda under this plan during the Conservative tenure, and it was scrapped when Labor came into power. 

What has Starmer said about working with the EU on the migrant crisis?

Starmer's first discussions with other European heads of state as the U.K. Prime Minister came during the Fourth European Political Community (EPC) Summit, held on July 18, 2024, at Blenheim Palace in Woodstock, U.K. 

Concerning migration, Starmer spoke about closer cooperation with other European countries to tackle people-smuggling gangs. 

There was no report of any deals to take more illegal migrants from other European countries.

This was also corroborated by Elliot Dalton, the Communications Director at the Home Office to Logically Facts. He denied the claim that any deal had been signed with the EU or Italy relating to migration, instead pointing to Starmer's comments at the EPC summit.

"And as for a returns agreement, I've always said we're not going to be part of the EU scheme. That is for EU members. We're not an EU member. We've never wanted to or asked or sought to be part of that scheme and we're not going to be part of that scheme," Starmer had said.  

Does Italy send some asylum seekers to other countries?

Italy is part of the EU's New Pact on Migration and Asylum, which was approved by member nations on December 20, 2023. This pact will start taking effect in 2024 and is designed to evenly distribute the burden of the migrant crisis between European countries from processing to resettlement so that border countries like Italy are not overburdened. The U.K. is not a part of this pact as it is for EU member states only. 

Italy has signed a deal with Albania and can send thousands of asylum seekers for processing in Italian-run centers within Albania in 2024. However, Italy has signed this deal with just Albania, not the U.K. or any other European country. 

Starmer has also spoken about his interest in considering such a deal with other countries where illegal asylum seekers arriving in the U.K. will have their applications processed offshore.  

The verdict

No deal has been signed between Starmer and the European Union to take more migrants from Italy. The social media posts have shared a false claim.