The figures have caused a stir across the Channel. According to data from the Home Office, published by The Times, nearly 20,000 foreign offenders facing deportation are currently living freely in the United Kingdom. A more recent count even puts the figure at 21,294. Among them are 569 Algerian nationals, a number some media outlets have put at 596.
Algeria is not alone. Jamaica tops the list with 775 people concerned, closely followed by Nigeria with 773, then Iraq with 642. Two African countries thus rank among the four most represented nationalities, putting their diasporas in the spotlight.
Most striking of all is how few removals actually take place. For Algerians, the rate of deportations carried out stands at just 4.2%, compared with 3.4% for Iraqis. EU nationals, by contrast, are removed far more often. These percentages are only indicative, however: the removals counted include prisoners deported straight from jail, while the base figure covers only people at liberty.
Why do these cases stall? To remove an offender, London must first obtain a valid passport or consular travel document from the country of origin. Court appeals, often based on the right to family life under the European Convention on Human Rights, can then delay the process for months. On top of that, robust readmission agreements are needed, without which nothing moves.
On this front, the UK and Algeria are not starting from scratch. The two countries signed an agreement governing deportations, with safeguards, as early as 2006, along with an extradition treaty. More recently, the Home Office set up a reintegration support programme for returned Algerians, including airport reception and support on the ground. France has had more strained dealings with Algiers, which refused a list of some sixty nationals it wanted to deport before relations thawed.
In London, the issue has become a political weapon. Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp says he obtained the data only after a year of requests, and denounces the removal of only a tiny fraction of offenders from countries including Jamaica, Nigeria, Algeria and India. The Labour government replies that every foreign national jailed is flagged for deportation as soon as possible and banned from returning, and claims nearly 12,000 removals in two years, 41% more than in the previous two years.
The tightening continues. Since the spring, anyone given a suspended prison sentence of at least twelve months, in the UK or abroad, has their visa refused or cancelled, and the government is preparing to reform how the right to family life is applied so that public safety takes precedence.
For the Algerian and Nigerian diasporas, largely made up of workers and students living in the country legally, this debate leaves a bitter taste. It singles out a minority of offenders but fuels a climate of suspicion that spills over onto entire communities, and reminds the governments in Algiers and Abuja that consular management of their nationals abroad remains a major diplomatic issue.