53.000 illegal immigrants have been repatried

The Spanish Minister for the Interior, Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba, told the Interior Commission in congress yesterday, that the migratory pressure of immigrants arriving on the Canary Islands will not reduce in the near future.

The Minister said that Spain has so far repatriated 53,000 immigrants this year, and explained that two out of every three irregular immigrants who tried to cross the Strait of Gibraltar were now being intercepted by the authorities.

The Minister highlighted increased cooperation with the Moroccan authorities, and said that joint naval patrols with the Mauritanian authorities have started to bear fruit.

The opposition Partido Popular is demanding a new law with exceptional measures to deal with the situation.