Politics
(Brussels) Today the European Commission has presented a “new set of proposals in key areas” linked to the 2015 European Agenda on Migration in “light of the progress achieved so far in its implementation”. In line with what President Jean-Claude Junker had already announced in his State of the Union address on 13 September, the Commission will be moving in three directions: first of all, by continuing its work on the relocation of migrants. Indeed, the Commission is ready to “provide financial support to Member States who sustain their relocation efforts beyond the current schemes” (under which up to 37,000 are expected to be relocated). At the same time, States are urged to achieve “decisive progress on the reform of the Common European Asylum System, especially the Dublin Regulation”. A second area relates to “a new resettlement scheme for at least 50,000 refugees over the next two years”: the most vulnerable persons in need of international protection in crisis regions. The current resettlement schemes have “provided new homes to over 23,000 persons in the EU”, and now the Commission has set aside €500 million to support Member States’ efforts in this direction. The Commission also encourages Member States to “set up private sponsorship schemes allowing private groups or civil society organisations to organise and finance resettlements in accordance with national legislation” – all this in order to achieve a “stronger, more effective and fairer” EU migration and asylum policy.
