First measures of the European Agenda on Migration

Briefing 17-06-2015

The unprecedented influx of migrants on the EU's southern borders, and the large numbers of tragic deaths of people attempting to cross the Mediterranean irregularly, has brought home the need for more effective management of migration to deal with the current situation. Gathered at the special meeting of the European Council on 23 April 2015, Member States' leaders agreed on the urgent need to seek solutions to the escalating situation. The European Commission was tasked with proposing measures for immediate action, as well as policy options for the medium and longer term. On 15 May 2015, the Commission presented its proposal for a European Agenda on Migration, which was followed on 27 May 2015 by the implementation plan for the first measures. This first set of proposals, currently under debate among the Member States as well as various stakeholders, was discussed by the Interior Ministers of the Member States on 16 June 2015 and will subsequently be addressed in the European Council on 25 and 26 June 2015. The European Parliament is preparing an own-initiative report on a holistic approach to migration.