this is a story about two societies struggling to cope with the movement of people. in the uk, the arrivals of large numbers of young albanians has been called a crisis. in albania, the loss of another generation is seen as almost existential. so why is this happening and what can be done? we've come to the albanian capital, tirana, to meeta man with a very rare story. we're calling him artan, although that's not his real name. he's concerned about reprisals from the gangs. now, he is from this city, but not from the bright lights and the flashy bars of the center, but from this tirana, an industrial city where people make just a few hundred dollars a month and that's the world he was trying to leave. last month, he paid people—smugglers to make the dangerous and illegal journey across the channel to the uk, but what makes his story

interesting is that within five days he was on a deportation flight back home, thousands of pounds in debt. like all albanians, artan was able to travel through europe to the french coast without a visa. that's where he took this footage. he's on his way to meet the people—smugglers he had paid for passage to dover. translation: there were several traffickers, all armed _ with knives and pistols. they were repeatedly threatening us, saying not to film anything and not even to smoke. the money had been agreed in advance via a uk whatsapp number. we paid £3,500 each. what you're about to see and hear is rare footage — from on board one of the small boats across the english channel, inflatables packed with dozens of people, and the testimony of someone who was on board. translation: the journey - across the channel was torture.

it was cold, stormy and incredibly scary. it took us almost an hour to get the dinghy going, by which time traffickers had all left. once the boats are at sea, the french police seemingly don't intercept them for safety reasons. artan witnessed the cooperation between the british and the french. translation: a french police boat appeared 20 i minutes into ourjourney. they accompanied us from a distance of maybe 200 meters, just observing, which reassured us. they stayed for three hours, maybe longer. then we crossed into uk waters and called the british police. they told us they were coming to get us, that we mustn't panic. they behaved well and seemed very welcoming and polite. wejumped to the uk police boat where we got life vests. the numbers crossing have risen sharply over the past year. albanians now make up the single largest group

arriving in small boats — 12,000 and counting. it's led to furious arguments, with the british home secretary calling it "an invasion", the opposition accusing the government of incompetence, and widespread coverage in the british media. good afternoon. it's feared scores of people may have died when... almost 20,000 refugees - commandeered ships and set sail. those who run the lucrative and dangerous traffic in human lives are rarely filmed, but the police were determined to make these two captured albanian smugglers... but those news reports you're hearing aren't from this week, this month, even this year. this is coverage of a previous exodus from albania, back in 1997. in total, there have been four major waves — two in the �*90s, one in the early 2000s, and this one. it's led to the extraordinary statistic that around a third of people born in albania

now live overseas. so what is it that keeps driving albanians from their homes on uncertain and dangerous journeys? to try and understand, there is really only one place to start. we're traveling north to a region called kukes, just on the border with kosovo. this is the part of albania where many of the young men and women who've left for the uk have come from. indeed, so many have left from the region there are now real concerns around the population. you can see it at kukes' football team. the under—i7 teams have enough for a few sides. by the time they get to under—i9 there are barely 11 players left. in our country there are so many problems and so many can't follow their dream here, so they choose to go outside the country. why do you feel that

you want to leave this region? because this place is terrible. no future here. no future. translation: our youth here, all they think - about is one thing — leaving. maybe it's because they've lost all hope, i really don't know. i really don't know how to make sense of it all. for the team coach, the situation is personal. as well as losing many of his players, both of his children have travelled to the uk. translation: it's painful to talk about it. _ it touches us all straight in our hearts. it scratches our wounds. my own children have left. we are left alone here. it's a huge problem. we have to get beyond politics, as well. when i see what's happening, we used to have a good intake and now we can barely form a team. it really hurts. the main reason people give for leaving is a lack of economic opportunity.

average wages in albania are just over $500 a month. according to the opposition, corruption is also a huge problem, with government inaction to blame. so why do you think young people are leaving this country in such numbers? they believe that the system that exists is not fair. meritocracy does not exist. they don't have economic opportunities. it's very difficult for social mobility. if you are born poor in albania, you remain poor independently of how much you work. and we should acknowledge that, as politicians, it's linked with a high corruption, especially in the north of the country. it's linked with the lack of opportunities. and this is something up to the government. so this is kukes at night and, as you can see, it's pretty quiet. the few people that are in bars and restaurants are generally on the older side. you can see why all the young people leaving this city is such a problem. the question is, what can be done about it?

the current focus of the british government is law enforcement and deportations, something they say they are working closely on with the albanian authorities. but artan is one of a relatively small number of albanians to have actually been sent home. only 440 were returned in the first half of the year, and only a tiny proportion of them at short notice. translation: i was told, tomorrow l morning you will arrive in tirana. l at that moment i was so upset i can't describe it. i felt like my brain was exploding and i could do nothing about it all. there were three more policemen who stayed just with me while i was waiting on the bus. i told them, we haven't killed anybody, what's this all about? ok, you want to escort us, but we are not terrorists. i have never had any problems with the authorities. i have never broken the law. although, presumably at that point, you realized you had committed a crime because you'd entered

the uk illegally? yes, that's understandable and, ultimately, that's why they deported us. but nevertheless, we had hoped that they might show us some compassion. but for many, this is the problem. backlogs mean thatjust claiming asylum is essentially a ticket to stay in the uk. the british government claims the system is widely abused. their opponents say it is their failures that are to blame. in albania, there are calls for more safe and legal routes. law enforcement does not work. policies do not work. border control does not work. there should be a legal system, like a normal way for these people not to oblige to do so. there should be a fast track in terms of procedures, as we have with other eu countries. we did ask the albanian government for an interview, but no one was available. many authorities here should be doing more to encourage people to stay in places like kukes.

for its part, the uk government has set up a project, costing £8 million overfour years, designed to help. that scheme has only been running a couple of months, so is yet to show results, but we can see the sort of thing they're hoping to emulate. this is an agro—tourism operation set up by two brothers who themselves crossed to italy in small boats in the 1990s, returning years later with money to start a business. step by step we invested what we have profits here, and in 12 years we made it what you see. now, it is is famous throughout albania. what is the solution to this problem, as far as you see it? translation: | don't think. the solution will come quickly. this will be a slow process. it starts with improving our education system and making economic development fair. albania's problems will not be solved by businessmen

building skyscrapers, petrol stations or malls. i believe we can stop the hemorrhaging of our young people by developing our rural areas and building a sustainable tourism industry. this is undoubtedly a huge albanian success story. 115,000 euros made in italy, brought back here and turned into a business employing hundreds, maybe more than 1,000 people, and turning over three euros million a year. the question, though, is can something like this be replicated across this country in a way that makes young albanians want to stay here? it is a real challenge for tirana, where everyone knows corruption is a big problem, but one that is incredibly hard to tackle. as for the british government, as long as asylum applications are taking years to process, no amount of tough talk will stop the gangs. what would your message be to other young albanians thinking

of following in your footsteps, of doing what you did? translation: i'd tell them if they are not sure - where they are going, if they don't have a proper way of moving abroad, it would be betterfor them not to leave at all. i would not recommend taking small boats to anyone. it was an unimaginable terror. for certain, i'd say, don't choose the dinghy. if there is a legal way with a visa, then yes, leave. but please never think about leaving on a dinghy. tirana can experience the most astonishing thunderstorms, an analogy maybe for this whole debate. the situation is leaving albanian towns and villages hollowed out, robbed of their youth. it is also making already fractious british politics more tempestuous still. the only thing all sides can really agree on is that the current situation isn't working for anyone except the people smugglers making huge profits risking

other people's lives. strong southerly winds brought mild air to everyone today, with temperatures reaching 15 degrees in northern scotland this band of cloud has been bringing some rain. that weatherfront this band of cloud has been bringing some rain. that weather front is bringing this wetter weather down to the south—east. we have clear skies following to the north and a few showers. scotland and northern ireland are starting off at temperatures at 6 degrees on sunday

morning, much milderto temperatures at 6 degrees on sunday morning, much milder to the south—east and it looks like it will be a cloudy day. still could be some rain left over from overnight, extending into hampshire, as well. as shields of cloud in the midlands and lincolnshire. 0ther as shields of cloud in the midlands and lincolnshire. other parts of england and will send some sunshine. 0ne england and will send some sunshine. one or two showers for northern ireland and maybe western scotland, but some sunshine as well. it is still quite glowing in the north—west of scotland for a while and it will be a mild day with temperatures 11—13 . a few degrees lower than it was for scotland and northern ireland than it was on saturday. we could see some wetter weather living in during the evening for the east of england. for that weather front finally moves away time from monday, we are left with lighter winds, clearer skies with temperatures lower for the start of the new week. there could be some mist and fog forming as well here and there, especially across north—east england which will be

slow to clear. 0therwise, north—east england which will be slow to clear. otherwise, we should see some sunshine breaking through. a few showers moving in and western parts of england and wales, running eastwards across southern england, too. large part of the country will be dry in the afternoon and temperatures a bit lower, between nine and 11 degrees. that really is the sign of things to come because all the mild atlantic air will be struggling to reach us. we have this blocking area of high pressure that extends across the canton area and purchase colder air our way. it is not desperately cold but after a very mild and wet november, as we head into the start of december, the start of winter, things are looking much drier and also a little colder.

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