The Council was informed of the state of negotiations on the various legislative proposals outstanding in relation to the Common European Asylum System (CEAS), on the basis of a Cypriot Presidency paper.
The situation on the four outstanding files can be described as follows:
- negotiations between the Council and the European Parliament on the Dublin Regulation have been finalised and the Council adopted this political agreement without discussion. The new rules will introduce a mechanism for early warning, preparedness and crisis management aimed at evaluating the practical functioning of national asylum systems, assisting Member States in need and preventing asylum crises. As a complement, the Council adopted conclusions (7485/12) in March 2012 on a common framework for genuine and practical solidarity towards Member States facing particular pressures on their asylum systems, including through mixed migration flows. These conclusions are intended to constitute a toolbox for EU-wide solidarity towards those Member States most affected by such pressures and/or encountering problems in their asylum systems;
- at its meeting on 25 and 26 October 2012 the Council confirmed the political agreement reached on the Reception Conditions Directive which fully reflects the result of negotiations with the European Parliament. Once the Directive is formally adopted, Member States will need to transpose the new provisions into national law within two years;
- in June 2012, the Commission tabled its new proposal for a revised Eurodac Regulation which allows law enforcement authorities to access this central EU-wide fingerprint database for the purposes of fighting terrorism and organised crime, subject to strict conditions on data protection. In October 2012, the Council adopted its position with a view to negotiations with the European Parliament; trilogues are expected to start in the next few days, as soon as the Parliament has adopted its position on this legislative text;
- on the Asylum Procedures Directive, further progress has been made in negotiations with the European Parliament with a view to reaching agreement before the end of 2012. These negotiations are based on a revised proposal for a Directive which was tabled by the Commission on 1 June 2011. On 27 November 2012, the Permanent Representatives Committee (Coreper) adopted a revised compromise package. The negotiations between the Council and the European Parliament on the Asylum Procedures Directive are in their end phase. The positions of the Council and the Parliament have converged on many issues and agreement is sought before the end of 2012 on the basis of a global compromise package.
Four other agreements and decisions relating to the CEAS have already been adopted. They concern:
1. the Qualification Directive providing for better, clearer and more harmonised standards for identifying persons in need of international protection which was adopted in November 2011;
2. the Long term Residence Directive adopted in April 2011;
3. the Regulation establishing the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) which started operations in the spring of 2011;
4. the Decision taken in March 2012 establishing common EU resettlement priorities for 2013 and new rules on EU funding for resettlement activities carried out by Member States.