A report on the need for a holistic approach to migration co-authored by MEP Roberta Metsola was approved by the European Parliament’s Justice, Home Affairs and Civil Liberties Committee today with wide support from most of the political parties in the European Parliament.
The report goes into detail on every aspect of the issue, from the need for security at the external borders, more search and rescue, the overhaul of the Dublin Regulation, tackling trafficking networks, addressing the root causes of migration, integration and the return of those not eligible for protection.
Significantly for Malta and other frontline Member States, the report underlines that the current rule whereby it is migrants’ first country of arrival that is responsible for them, needs to be revised.
Commenting on the outcome of the vote in committee, Dr Metsola said: “This report maps out the bi-partisan approach from the European Parliament. It aims to give a holistic approach to the issue that has so far been lacking. The vote we have seen in committee this morning and the wide cross-partisan support that it received is encouraging. We are at a unique point where we have laid out the broad political lines that we need to follow when it comes to a European response to migration.
“When we started this process last year, we knew it would be challenging. We did not know that we would be doing this in the midst of the worst refugee crisis since the Second World War and hampered by the security challenges we face as a continent.
“If there is one thing that is clear, it is that there is no quick fix to migration, there is no magical silver bullet. We need to look at every single aspect and come up with an all-encompassing plan that looks at the short, medium and long term responses.”
1.8 million people crossed into Europe last year. 3,771 people drowned in the Mediterranean. This year already more than 77 children have died.
Dr Metsola remarked: “This is the magnitude of the situation we are facing, and as politicians we have a duty to take a stand, to ensure that these are not just nameless statistics. We must focus our resources on those people who really need help and that is why it is so important that we ensure that those who can be returned safely back are in fact returned.
“Indifference is not an option. It is time for action on every aspect, and in the short, medium and long term – and this is what this report calls for.”
