AS I write, I’m currently sat in Mother Teresa Airport in Tirana, the capital of Albania, waiting for our delayed Wizz Air flight to arrive. It’s all glamour being an MP.

The Home Affairs Select Committee has been away for the last three days, meeting with the fantastic British Embassy Team, the NCA, Home Office, local civil society groups, Albanian MPs, Government Ministers and the judiciary to get under the skin of what is driving Albanians to get on small boats and cross the busiest shipping lane in the world to get to the UK.

Last year they accounted for 28% of those taking these journeys. As a result there is a huge amount of activity from the PM and the Government to lower those figures, and Albania and the UK have put in place a returns agreement to ensure that those who do travel illegally can be easily sent back.

But, as ever, scratch under the surface and it is clear that there is far more to the story than you might first think. Albania is country hungry for change. The young people we spoke to are ambitious and feel held back by a stale government and inequity. The civil society groups want an end to corruption, and to see investment in the regions.

Albania is a beautiful country and has huge opportunity ahead of it. But for the UK to deliver on its interest - stopping the boats - it may well have to support changing the factors that are pushing young people to make dangerous journeys in pursuit of something better.

The brilliant team at the Embassy in Albania are working on just that: supporting the state; supporting those who might be at risk; helping Albania clamp down on corruption; and keeping the flow of individuals being returned to Albania moving. This is a country at a turning point, but I left optimistic for what could be achieved, and to see that the PM’s clear message that he expects these boats to be stopped is being translated into concrete actions at the far reaches of Europe.

My job in the Select Committee is to scrutinise the work that the Government is doing, to test that they will meet their objectives, and to ensure that taxpayers’ money is well spent. I leave Tirana content that it is, but our enquiry on this issue is far from over.

Prior to leaving for Albania, it was another busy week in Westminster. On Monday I was in Downing Street to meet with the PM’s Chief of Staff and his Security Advisor to talk about AUKUS and the £3billion investment in the submarine programme. This will bring huge opportunities for Barrow, and it is crucial that we use this space to lobby for further investment in our community to help those essential programmes be delivered.

I also took the opportunity in the Commons of asking the Justice Secretary to review how social media can be used and manipulated both before and during high profile court cases. Traditional media (like The Evening Mail) have reporting restrictions which are designed to ensure that a fair and unbiased trial can be achieved. Social media has no such restrictions. I will be meeting with the Lord Chancellor shortly to take this issue forwards.