European commision (EC) presented on Wednesday European Union (ES) migration and asylum reform plan, launching a debate on one of the bloc’s most politically sensitive issues.
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The EC proposal – the new Pact on Migration and Asylum – provides that EU countries that do not wish to take in more migrants on a voluntary basis can take responsibility for the repatriation of rejected migrants.
Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said this week that mandatory refugee quotas would not work for all EU countries, and that Visegrad countries were opposed to mandatory accommodation for migrants and called for such plans to be implemented following the 2015 migration crisis.
The EU ‘s external borders, which will be under great migratory pressure, such as Italy and Malta, will be able to demand that the EC activate the “minimum solidarity mechanism”, the new proposals provide. All countries will then have to contribute in proportion to their economic importance and population, but will be able to choose between receiving asylum seekers, sponsoring the repatriation of rejected migrants or helping to build reception centers.
In the event of a recurrence of events similar to the 2015 migration crisis, the choice between taking responsibility for the accommodation of refugees and the repatriation of rejected migrants will be reduced. But if an EU country fails to return migrants to their home countries within eight months, they will have to take them in.
EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ilva Johansson said her office wanted the return of asylum seekers to their home countries to be rejected more quickly. “We need to send back those who do not qualify to stay,” the commissioner said. “I think it is necessary for the EU to act more decisively and to be much more effective in terms of return.”
One way to speed up the return process is to introduce a procedure right at the border, the commissioner said. The new proposals include a mandatory pre-entry screening process when a person arrives in the EU and applies for asylum. The migrant will undergo a health and safety check. It will then be decided whether to initiate the normal asylum procedure for this person or the accelerated procedure at the border, which will last for a maximum of 12 weeks.
The proposals are expected to provoke opposition from all parties. It is far from certain that they will be approved by EU leaders and The European Parliament. Previous efforts have failed.
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