REPORT on an EU approach to managing economic migration
7.10.2005 - (COM (2004)0811 - 2005/2059(INI))
Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs
Rapporteur: Ewa Klamt
MOTION FOR A EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT RESOLUTION
on an EU approach to managing economic migration (COM(2004)0811 - 2005/2059(INI))
The European Parliament,
– having regard to the Commission Green Paper on an EU approach to managing economic migration (COM(2004)0811),
– having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and in particular to Article 13 thereof on freedom of movement and residence and the right to return,
– having regard to the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, and in particular to Article 8 thereof on the right to respect for private and family life,
– having regard to the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, and in particular to Article 15 thereof on professional freedom and the right to work,
– having regard to the Commission communication entitled 'Study on the links between legal and illegal migration' (COM(2004)0412),
– having regard to the Commission communication entitled 'First Annual Report on Migration and Integration' (COM(2004)0508),
– having regard to the opinions of the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions of 15 December 2004 and 24 January 2005 on the Commission Communication entitled 'Study on the links between legal and illegal migration',
– having regard to its resolution of 15 January 2004 on the Commission communication on immigration, integration and employment[1],
– having regard to the Treaty of Amsterdam, which conferred on the Community tasks and responsibilities in the areas of immigration and asylum, and to Article 63 of the EC Treaty,
– having regard to conclusions of the European Council at its meetings of 15 and 16 October 1999 in Tampere, 14 and 15 December 2001 in Laeken, 21 and 22 June 2002 in Seville and 19 and 20 June 2003 in Thessaloniki,
– having regard to its recommendation of 14 October 2004 on the future of the area of freedom, security and justice as well as on the measures required to enhance the legitimacy and effectiveness thereof[2],
– having regard to the conclusions of the European Council at its meeting of 4 and 5 November 2004 in Brussels and the attached Hague Programme,
– having regard to Rule 45 of its Rules of Procedure,
– having regard to the report of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs and the opinions of the Committee on Development, the Committee on International Trade and the Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (A6‑0286/2005),
A. whereas it should be the task of the European Union, in the interests of the managed migration of workers into the Community and of full employment, to develop a common migration policy in accordance with Community development policy and alongside the effective implementation of the right of freedom of movement of persons within the Community,
B. whereas the EU needs to create a genuine European immigration policy as soon as possible,
C. whereas economic immigration can help in the management of existing migratory flows, having as one of its important potential effects the reduction of illegal migration, and whereas it can also have the knock-on effect of helping to combat exploitation of illegal immigrants in the black economy and trafficking in people,
D. whereas economic migration is only a part of the solution to the Community's demographic and economic difficulties; whereas, in order to meet the challenges of globalisation, efforts should be made to find new solutions in the field of economic policy and the labour market, notably in relation to the balance between professional and family life for women and men and equal pay for equal jobs,
E. whereas a European immigration policy must be based on respect for the fundamental rights of the person, pursuant to the international conventions in force,
F. having regard to the forecasts concerning the ageing of Europe's active population and the future threats to intergenerational solidarity in Europe, which will generate new needs for both skilled and unskilled labour in all the EU's Member States,
G. whereas with regard to immigration the Member States of the European Union have developed from being countries of origin into countries of destination,
H. whereas any change in immigration policy in one Member State may affect migratory flows and developments in other Member States, and this is an additional reason for adopting a common immigration policy,
I. convinced that, as an area without internal frontiers, the European Union must pursue a common, coherent and effective approach to securing its external borders and devise a common visa, asylum and immigration policy which is based on mutual respect and solidarity and consistent with international human rights obligations in order to guarantee a safe European society; whereas such a policy must respect fundamental rights, include the fight against discrimination, racism and xenophobia and regulate migration on a global, balanced and humane basis,
J. whereas the deadline for transposition of Council Directive 2003/109/EC of 25 November 2003 concerning the status of third-country nationals who are long-term residents[3] will expire on 23 January 2006, and whereas that directive provides that, if a third‑country national has resided legally in an EU Member State for five years, he/she may acquire long‑term resident status and consequently the right to reside in another EU Member State,
K. whereas immigration on economic grounds represents a challenge to the European Union which calls for a common approach rather than a strictly national view of the migration issue,
L. whereas immigration has proven to have positive effects on the labour market (dynamism) and should therefore be welcomed as an opportunity, rather than defined as a security issue,
M. whereas economic migration policies should be linked to the Lisbon Strategy and the European Employment Strategy,
N. convinced that measures to regulate legal immigration and integration must be accompanied by measures to secure external borders, a rigorous return policy and measures to combat illegal immigration and human trafficking and the exploitation of immigrants in illegal employment,
O. convinced that a successful policy of legal immigration also depends on the implementation of a comprehensive and a more pro-active strategy to achieve full integration, covering a range of social, economic and civic measures, as well as introduction programmes and language training, given that immigration and integration policies must not be considered separately,
P. whereas it is essential to guarantee full respect for the right to family life for all immigrants legally resident on EU territory, pursuant to the European Convention on Human Rights, and whereas it is necessary to revise Council Directive 2003/86/EC of 22 September 2003 on the right to family reunification[4] in order to ensure that this right is respected,
Q. aware that cooperation between the European Union and its Member States and countries of origin is of major importance and needs to be accompanied by a genuine policy for codevelopment,
R. whereas all Member States should ratify the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families,
S. whereas illegal employment is the greatest draw for illegal immigration, and therefore Member States should step up efforts to tackle illegal employment and to deter and punish persons who employ illegal migrants,
1. Regrets that the Council has decided to maintain unanimity and the consultation procedure in the whole area of legal immigration; believes, on the contrary, that only by means of the codecision procedure will it be possible to adopt effective and transparent legislation in that field;
2. Recalls that migrants have contributed, and are contributing, to the prosperity and the economic, cultural and social development of the EU's Member States;
3. Considers that economic migration is a positive human phenomenon which has always promoted the development of civilisations and cultural and technological exchanges;
4. Regrets that the Council has not yet managed to adopt a common immigration policy, and has concentrated essentially on the punitive aspect (readmission agreements, police checks at borders, etc);
5. Points out that the effective development of a common migration policy with due regard for fundamental rights and international human rights obligations is a priority goal of European integration and has been notably reiterated in the Hague Programme adopted on 4 and 5 November 2004;
6. Considers that, in order to encourage the social and political integration of migrant workers, they should be granted equal rights; calls, therefore, on the Member States, the Commission and the Council to take all necessary steps to ensure recognition of the right of migrants who have been continuously resident in the Union for at least five years to vote in local and European Parliament elections;
7. Calls upon the Member States to create specific residence permits designed to facilitate the search for work;
8. Calls on the Commission to ensure the inclusion in decisions and framework decisions of all the provisions of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families adopted by the UN General Assembly on 18 December 1990, which is aimed at integrating migrant workers; calls on the Member States, in accordance with its resolution of 24 February 2005 on the EU's priorities and recommendations for the 61st session of the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva[5] and the European Economic and Social Committee opinion[6], to ensure the speedy ratification of the said UN Convention, which not a single Member State has ratified to date;
9. Calls on Member States to immediately remove all barriers to free movement for EU citizens;
10. Considers that the European Union's immigration policy must follow a global and coherent approach based on synergies between various policy areas and not merely on labour market requirements in the Member States;
11. Insists on the need to adopt a common immigration policy in order to end the exploitation of workers made vulnerable by the absence of legal immigration channels;
12. Calls on the Commission, in designing a European framework for economic migration, to take into account the different policies and experiences existing in the Member States, and stresses that a constant evaluation of the impact of migration policy on other EU policies, including trade policy, should be carried out;
13. Favours the possibility of making entry conditions more flexible and effective, with provision for a residence permit for purposes of employment, minimum standards for the admission of third-country nationals for the purpose of working either as employees or as self-employed persons, and residence and work permits for seasonal workers or those employed on a time-limited basis;
14. Believes it is essential to strengthen solidarity, particularly with the new Member States, in the development of measures for the integration of migrants;
15. Points out that mass regularisation aims to provide prospects for illegal migrants, but is no substitute for substantial policies for dealing with illegal immigration or an effective means of recruiting economic migrants;
16. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to take account of the circumstances of migrants already present on Union territory (asylum seekers, migrant workers' relatives, students, illegal immigrants and others) who are already contributing to the prosperity of the Union's economy but enjoy no legal recognition;
17. Emphasises that economic migration is part of the solution to the problem of Europe's ageing population and its economic difficulties and believes that the Member States must adopt new approaches to economic and employment policies, including policies reconciling professional and family life, if they are to meet the challenges of a globalised world;
18. Recalls that problems within the EU labour market should be solved not only by economic migration but also by stimulating innovation and new technologies, increasing productivity and encouraging the employment of older workers in the EU;
19. Recommends that the Council take suitable action to facilitate exchange of information and better policy coordination;
20. Calls on the Commission to analyse the Member States' tested methods of combating illegal immigration;
21. Draws attention to the importance of the inclusion by the European Union, in all the association and cooperation agreements it concludes, of clauses on the common management of migratory flows and compulsory readmission in the event of illegal immigration;
22. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to launch public awareness and information campaigns on legal immigration policies and their positive impact, notably in order to dispel public anxiety and create a positive image of immigration;
23. Calls on the Commission to draw up a proposal for a directive laying down minimum and sufficient criteria for admitting third-country nationals into the Union for purposes of employment, the main objective being to open up legal channels for immigration;
24. Believes that this legislation should define an overall (rather than sectoral) regulatory framework of reference;
25. Calls on the Commission to come forward with a proposal for a European green card system;
26. Is convinced that it is preferable to put in place one single administrative procedure for issuing an employment and residence permit for an economic migrant, taking into account the subsidiarity principle;
27. Notes that, in principle, the admission of an economic migrant under such a system should be linked to the existence of a specific job; however, calls on the Commission to investigate the possibility of issuing special residence permits for jobseekers and the self-employed;
28. Calls on the Member States to consider the introduction of special combined residence and work permits in order to facilitate the recruitment of workers on a seasonal or time-limited basis;
29. Believes that the proposal should, in order to reduce illegal immigration and black labour, include provisions enabling migrant workers to enter for purposes of seeking employment, subject to specific conditions such as the presence of a guarantor or sponsor or provision by the migrant of proof of ability to maintain himself;
30. Calls on the Commission to clearly define the rights and obligations of an economic migrant;
31. Calls on the Commission to define a return policy, based on the promotion of voluntary return, including possibly supportive measures in the country of origin;
32. Calls on the Commission to look also into the issue of possible over-stayers, taking into account the duration of employment and residence, the presence of family members and the level of integration;
33. Calls on the Member States to take account not only of economic interests but of all other legitimate interests when authorising labour migration so that authorisation is the outcome of a balanced weighing-up of the interests involved;
34. Calls on the Commission to consider the setting of minimum standards with regard to selection norms and with regard to the certification of foreign diplomas;
35. Calls on the Commission to devise and implement jointly with Member States, without delay, comprehensive guidelines on the objective compiling of meaningful statistics so as to obtain a complete and differentiated picture of migration and its economic impact in the Member States and countries of origin, and on existing labour requirements in the whole of the European Union;
36. Calls on the Commission to examine the possibility of local and/or regional information/contact points for European companies interested in employing economic migrants;
37. Encourages Member States to establish a dedicated website with job vacancies, so as to provide up-to-date and publicly accessible information to applicants, and to make the job vacancies available on the EURES website;
38. Calls on the Commission, when preparing its future action plan, to include provisions enabling the exchange of best practices in the area of integration between Member States;
39. Draws attention to the responsibility of individual Member States in matters of integration, which involves rights and responsibilities not only for the host society but also for immigrants; calls on the Member States to coordinate their individual policies using the open coordination method on the basis of the common guidelines on EU immigrant integration policy adopted by the Council on 19 November 2004;
40. Calls on the Commission to propose a regulation to ensure that, following their return to developing countries, economic migrants have access to the money paid by them into European social security schemes;
41. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to pay special attention to the specific situation of women migrants with dependent children, particularly as regards their rights under temporary contracts of employment;
42. Calls on the receiving Member States and the migrants' States of origin to conclude agreements to guarantee transfers of entitlements acquired in either country to the other regarding length of service in skilled employment or social security;
43. Stresses that payments transferred by migrants from host countries to their home countries significantly exceed development aid payments and are of huge importance to achievement of the Millennium Development Goal of eradicating poverty, and urges the relevant institutions to make the transfer of payments easier by charging the lowest possible fees;
44. Emphasises the importance of cooperation between the host society on the one hand and immigrants, their communities of origin and the local assisting NGOs on the other, especially in making it easier for them to come and go between the host country and the country of origin;
45. Considers it necessary to alter the public perception of migration in Europe, notably by actively combating discrimination, racism and xenophobia and including the history of migrations in school curricula;
46. Is in favour of encouraging 'brain circulation' by extending the principle of 'Community preference' to those who have already worked for some years in the EU before returning to their own country;
47. Considers it vital that a European economic migration policy should also comprise practical solutions to the problem of the brain drain;
48. Calls on the Commission to open a dialogue with the governments of countries of origin without delay, in order to achieve balanced legislation that allows migration and enables professional experience to be developed; calls on it, within the context of this dialogue, to enhance the development of specific measures in the sectors particularly affected by the brain drain, in accordance with the countries concerned;
49. Calls on the Member States concerned to provide locally-based information to potential immigrants on their options and prospects as regards legal entry for purposes of employment; calls on the Commission to encourage coordination between the diplomatic and consular services of different Member States in the same country, not least to steer immigrants as far as possible towards Member States that have absorption capacity matching their respective professional profiles; proposes, to this end, greater human and financial resources for the Member States' consular services and the EU delegations, via such programmes as ARGO and AENEAS;
50. Recalls that fair treatment and equal rights for migrants are essential;
51. Points out that the common migration policy must take account of migrants' reasons for coming to Europe, in some cases risking their lives, and that it must therefore be linked to an active common development cooperation policy;
52. Stresses the importance of, and the need to strengthen, cooperation not only between the EU and the countries of origin but also between the countries of origin themselves, especially among the countries included in the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), between the ACP countries and between the former and the latter;
53. Expects the Commission, when taking measures against organised trafficking in human beings from developing countries, not to criminalise the victims, but to focus on punishing the perpetrators; notes that many women who are victims of human trafficking have no access to legal or social protection;
54. Calls on the Commission to recognise child migration as a distinct aspect of economic migration and to guarantee the rights of, and protection for, migrants who are minors, pursuant to Article 24 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union;
55. Considers that the regulation of immigration between third countries would help to protect the human and labour rights of immigrants, whilst helping to track down human traffickers and bring them to justice;
56. Recommends that the Commission make it easier for legal migrants who have returned to developing countries to immigrate again to the EU than for migrants immigrating to the European Union for the first time, in recognition of the experience of integrating which the former have gained;
57. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission and the governments and parliaments of the Member States.
- [1] OJ C 92 E, 16.4.2004, p. 390.
- [2] P6_TA(2004)0022.
- [3] OJ L 16, 23.1.2004, p.44.
- [4] OJ L 251, 3.10.2003, p. 12.
- [5] P6_TA(2005)0051.
- [6] Opinion SOC/173 of 30 June 2004.
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
The present Green Paper discusses various regulatory aspects of the management of economic migration. This provides an opportunity for a frank discussion of economic migration, the ultimate aim being to secure a reliable overview of opinion in the Member States and in the European institutions.
Both the on-line consultation exercise and the public hearing held by the European Commission on 16 June 2005 attracted a broad response and in-depth opinions on the issue.
Your rapporteur has deliberately confined herself to discussing a number of fundamental issues and giving pointers to the way ahead. It is not her intention to respond here to all the questions raised in the Green Paper.
A detailed opinion on individual aspects of the management of economic migration cannot be delivered until after subsequent drafts have been discussed by the European Commission.
The LIBE Committee points out the effective development of a common migration policy with due regard for fundamental rights and international obligations is a priority goal of European integration.
The creation of a coherent legal framework for immigration requires:
· synergies between European policies in areas such as employment, social affairs, development and external affairs;
· a system for the exchange of information and prior notification between the national authorities responsible for immigration and asylum;
· coordination of all structures involved in the management of migratory flows at both European and national level to avoid the risk of overlapping;
· cooperation with countries of origin, including clear information for potential immigrants about their job prospects and future living conditions.
EU citizens' acceptance of legal economic migration depends to a large extent on everything possible being done to prevent illegal migration, through measures to tackle illegal employment and human trafficking, the protection of external borders and a rigorous return policy. Mass regularisation aims to provide prospects for illegal migrants, but is no substitute for substantial policies for dealing with illegal immigration or an effective means of recruiting economic migrants. .
It is important to draw attention at this point to the importance of a national and European information policy which identifies the mood of citizens and explains the situation, the proposed measures and their repercussions. This will also involve bridging the obvious gap between the analysis of requirements and public perception.
The focus of discussion, and hence the approach to European regulation of economic migration, should not be the pros and cons of immigration but rather ways of regulating immigration as such.
Migration from one county to another, which today is mainly immigration into Europe, took place in the past and is still taking place.
In overall terms mobility is increasing. This is partly the result of the growing cross-border movements of goods and financial flows, greater trade volumes, global circulation of knowledge, cross-border service provision and firms operating internationally.
The need-based management of economic migration requires comprehensive and above all reliable data. On the one hand, the Member States should make this material available and on the other there needs to be a timely evaluation at European level. Statistics are a key factor in both regulations on migration and the acceptance of migrants.
Although the EU has never seen itself as a region of immigration in the American or Canadian sense of a country being settled by a potential labour force, today significantly more people are immigrating into the EU than into the traditional countries of immigration. Arrangements are required to manage these migratory flows ‘Skilled migration’ is geared to the desired economic outcomes in the host country. It focuses on the effects of immigration on growth, innovation, economic structure, wage trends, the labour market and the social security system.
A clear distinction has to be drawn between economic migration and the admission of third-country nationals on humanitarian grounds. The priority concerns of refugees and asylum-seekers are significantly different from those of economic migrants. The same applies to the expectations that host countries have of these different groups of migrants.
In contrast to admission on humanitarian grounds, in the case of economic migration the focus must be clearly on the need for specific selection of migrants. Criteria such as the level of education, vocational qualifications and experience, the existence of employment relationships. knowledge of languages and family connections are key considerations.
In any case, when recruiting third-country nationals for employment purposes it must be borne in mind that it is not just a question of the utilisation of labour. Individuals who have followed different paths and come from different social and historical backgrounds, and often people with families, all have to make a new home in the European Union.
It is essential to avoid competition for a share of economic and social facilities. This applies equally to national societies and the EU as a whole. Your rapporteur would like to emphasise this point because certain transitional arrangements still apply to the new Member States, for instance in the area of freedom of movement.
The Member States have to explore new medium and long-term avenues in economic, employment and family policy if they are to meet the challenges of a globalised world. Economic migration is only one component alongside many other policy measures. The European economy depends also on future retirement ages, future birth rates and rates of participation in the labour market (for instance, women over the age of 50).
In a European Union with largely open internal borders, any need for labour migration in individual Member States must be covered in a way that makes allowances for and shows a sense of responsibility towards other Member States.
This involves obligations but also protection for individual Member States. European regulations necessarily involve the acceptance of mutual responsibility, but they should also prohibit Member States from circumventing various national regulations.
We do not have a common European labour market, or uniform social security systems, uniform old age pension arrangements or harmonised sickness insurance schemes. Consequently, regulations on economic migration should be sufficiently flexible to take full account of national needs and specificities.
Integration measures fall within the competence of the Member States. If regional differences in the Member States are taken into account, there might be a need not only for a national integration policy, but even a regional or local integration policy.
On the other hand, successful immigration necessarily goes hand-in-hand with successful integration. National immigration policy must include a comprehensive approach to integration. This means that in shaping European immigration policy attention should be paid to integration policy.
In addition to the rights of migrant workers discussed in the Green Paper, it is also important to mention the social obligations of immigrants and their duty to integrate as well as the needs of host communities.
OPINION of the Committee on Development (2.9.2005)
for the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs
on an EU approach to managing economic migration
(2005/2059(INI))
Draftswoman: Gabriele Zimmer
SUGGESTIONS
The Committee on Development calls on the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, as the committee responsible, to incorporate the following suggestions in its motion for a resolution:
1. Calls on the Member States, in accordance with its resolution of 24 February 2005 on the EU's priorities and recommendations for the 61st session of the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva[1] and the European Economic and Social Committee opinion SOC/173, to ratify the UN Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families; calls on the Commission to base its recommendations regarding the rights of migrant workers and their families on this Convention, which is aimed at integrating migrant workers;
2. Points out that economic migration is necessary for the achievement of the objectives of the Lisbon Strategy and to ensure the European Union's economic growth;
3. Stresses that payments transferred by migrants from developing countries to their home countries significantly exceed development aid payments and are of huge importance to achieving the Millennium Goal of eradicating poverty and urges the relevant institutions to make the transfer of payments easier by charging the lowest possible fees;
4. Welcomes the planned phasing-in of a Community policy to regulate economic migration, provided that it meets the strictest requirements of humane treatment for all migrants; firmly rejects the creation of reception camps for migrants in Libya or other countries outside Europe;
5. Also points out that the harmonisation of immigration policies depends on establishing certain common criteria and that any measure in this sphere must be accompanied by prior information and specific integration programmes facilitating the integration of immigrants in the society of the host country;
6. Rejects the idea of adopting measures to regulate economic migration only after the legitimate demand of freedom of movement for all EU citizens has been met;
7. Calls on the Commission to open a dialogue with the governments of countries of origin without delay, in order to achieve balanced legislation that allows migration and enables professional experience to be developed; calls on it, within the context of this dialogue, to enhance the development of specific measures in the sectors particularly affected by the brain drain, in accordance with the countries concerned;
8. Stresses the importance of and need to strengthen cooperation not only between the EU and the countries of origin, but also between the countries of origin themselves, especially among the countries included in the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP), between the ACP countries and between the former and the latter;
9. Calls on the Commission to consider the option of limited residence permits for job-seekers, in order to reduce unofficial immigration;
10. Expects the Commission, when taking measures against organised trafficking in human beings from developing countries, not to criminalise the victims, but to focus on punishing the perpetrators; notes that many women who are victims of human trafficking have no access to legal or social protection; calls on the Member States to grant these women the possibility of long-term residence;
11. Welcomes the simplification of instruments to ensure cross-border cooperation and hopes that they will be sufficiently flexible to guarantee such cooperation;
12. Calls on the Commission to recognise child migration as a distinct aspect of economic migration and to guarantee the rights of, and protection for, migrants who are minors, pursuant to Article 24 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union;
13. Considers that the regulation of immigration between third countries would help to protect the human and labour rights of immigrants, whilst helping to track down human traffickers and bring them to justice;
14. Recommends that the Commission make it easier for legal migrants who have returned to developing countries to immigrate again to the EU than for migrants immigrating into the European Union for the first time, in recognition of the experience of integrating which they have gained;
15. Considers that it is essential to establish, in the countries of origin, demand-based educational systems with transparent procedures for issuing diplomas and qualifications, in order not only to consolidate trust on the EU's labour markets, but also to cover the needs of the countries of origin themselves; recommends that these countries should devise strategies to integrate the population, especially women, in the primary and secondary educational system, with particular emphasis on scientific training and their subsequent integration in the labour market;
16. Calls on the Commission to propose a regulation to ensure that, following their return to developing countries, economic migrants have access to the money paid by them into European social security schemes;
17. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to annul the transitional period laid down for the new Member States as regards the free movement of workers, in order to speed up the settlement of the issue of economic migration into the European Union.
PROCEDURE
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Title |
EU approach to managing economic migration | |||||
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Procedure number |
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Committee responsible |
LIBE | |||||
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Committee asked for its opinion |
DEVE | |||||
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Enhanced cooperation |
No | |||||
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Drafts(wo)man |
Gabriele Zimmer | |||||
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Discussed in committee |
12.7.2005 |
30.8.2005 |
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Date suggestions adopted |
30.8.2005 | |||||
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Result of final vote |
for: against: abstentions: |
32 0 0 | ||||
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Members present for the final vote |
Margrete Auken, Margrietus van den Berg, Danutė Budreikaitė, Marie-Arlette Carlotti, Thierry Cornillet, Nirj Deva, Alexandra Dobolyi, Fernando Fernández Martín, Michael Gahler, Filip Andrzej Kaczmarek, Glenys Kinnock, Ģirts Valdis Kristovskis, Maria Martens, Miguel Angel Martínez Martínez, Gay Mitchell, Luisa Morgantini, José Javier Pomés Ruiz, Toomas Savi, Pierre Schapira, Jürgen Schröder, Feleknas Uca, Paul Verges, Anna Záborská, Mauro Zani | |||||
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Substitutes present for the final vote |
Marie-Hélène Aubert, John Bowis, Manolis Mavrommatis, Anne Van Lancker, Gabriele Zimmer | |||||
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Substitutes under Rule 178(2) present for the final vote |
Carl Schlyter, Åsa Westlund, Jürgen Zimmerling | |||||
OPINION of the Committee on International Trade (2.9.2005)
for the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs
on an EU approach to managing economic migration
(2005/2059(INI))
Draftsperson: Danutė Budreikaitė
SUGGESTIONS
The Committee on International Trade calls on the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, as the committee responsible, to incorporate the following suggestions in its motion for a resolution:
1. Welcomes the Commission’s decision to revisit this issue by means of a Green Paper and a process of widespread consultation; calls on the Council and Commission, following this consultation process, to formulate a European economic migration policy incorporating the remarks of the European Parliament and national parliaments;
2. Emphasises the importance of ensuring that immigration takes place at a level which maintains the utmost respect for fundamental rights, which will result in increased public confidence;
3. Considers that economic migration is a positive human phenomenon, which has always promoted the development of civilisations and cultural and technological exchanges;
4. Calls on those Member States which are applying transitional periods in respect of the freedom of movement of workers to the old Member States to bring them to an end as soon as possible; takes the view that this is essential to prevent discrimination against workers from the new Member States;
5. Considers that economic migration meets two equally legitimate needs: that of migrants to escape poverty and that of the receiving countries to gain human resources;
6. Notes that EU legislation on the admission of economic migrants should lay down certain common definitions, criteria and procedures, particularly minimum criteria with a view to the formulation of a European integration policy, including the adoption of clear rules on the legal status of economic migrants, and should permit formally recognised entry to the labour market, confer a right to education in the national language and to vocational training organised by receiving Member States, and ensure recognition of diplomas;
7. Stresses the importance of ensuring that the European Union’s economic migration policy delivers a secure legal status and a guaranteed set of rights to assist the economic, social and cultural integration of those who are admitted;
8. Considers that the management of economic migration in the Union should be based on an overall rather than sectoral approach and that the management of migratory movements should not only serve labour market demand but be based on the reception and integration policies pursued by Member States and should respect the objectives of co-development;
9. Calls on the receiving Member States and the migrants' States of origin to conclude agreements to guarantee transfers of entitlements acquired in either country to the other regarding length of service in skilled employment or social security;
10. Calls on the Commission, in designing a European framework for economic migration, to take into account the different policies and experiences existing in the Member States, and stresses that a constant evaluation of the impact of migration policy on other EU policies, including trade policy, should be carried out;
11. Calls on the Commission to create cooperation mechanisms with emigrants' countries to prevent migration having detrimental effects on the economies and societies of the countries of origin and to enhance the positive impact of migration on their economies;
12. Considers that, in the interests of social cohesion, workers from third countries should be guaranteed the terms and conditions of employment and minimum social standards which apply in the receiving country;
13. Stresses that multilateral and bilateral agreements to manage migratory flows should guarantee a status of third-country migrant throughout the European Union, which should confer rights of citizenship and social and political rights;
14. Emphasises the importance of ensuring that the discussions on trade in services, which form an important part of the Doha Development Agenda, and decisions on free movement of services within the EU follow an equally open and consistent approach;
15. Considers it vital that a European economic migration policy should also comprise practical solutions to the problem of the brain drain;
16. Recalls that problems within the EU labour market should be solved not only by economic migration but also by stimulating innovation, new technologies, increasing productivity and by encouraging the employment of older workers in the EU;
17. Favours the possibility of making entry conditions more flexible and effective, with provision for a residence permit for purposes of employment, minimum standards for the admission of third-country nationals for the purpose of working either as employees or as self-employed persons, and residence and work permits for seasonal workers or limited employment;
18. Calls on the Commission to propose specific measures to promote voluntary financial transfers by migrants to their countries of origin.
PROCEDURE
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Title |
An EU approach to managing economic migration | |||||
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Procedure number |
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Committee responsible |
LIBE | |||||
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Committee asked for its opinion |
INTA | |||||
|
Enhanced cooperation |
No | |||||
|
Drafts(wo)man |
Danutė Budreikaitė 15.3.2005 | |||||
|
Discussed in committee |
11.7.2005 |
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|
|
| |
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Date suggestions adopted |
30.8.2005 | |||||
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Result of final vote |
for: against: abstentions: |
26 0 0 | ||||
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Members present for the final vote |
Kader Arif, Enrique Barón Crespo, Daniel Caspary, Françoise Castex, Nigel Farage, Christofer Fjellner, Glyn Ford, Béla Glattfelder, Sajjad Karim, Caroline Lucas, Erika Mann, Helmuth Markov, David Martin, Javier Moreno Sánchez, Georgios Papastamkos, Godelieve Quisthoudt-Rowohl, Tokia Saïfi, Peter Šťastný, Johan Van Hecke, Zbigniew Zaleski | |||||
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Substitutes present for the final vote |
Panagiotis Beglitis, Albert Deß, Pierre Jonckheer, Zuzana Roithová, Antolín Sánchez Presedo, Ivo Strejček | |||||
|
Substitutes under Rule 178(2) present for the final vote |
| |||||
OPINION of the Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (18.7.2005)
for the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs
on an EU approach to managing economic migration
(2005/2059(INI))
Draftswoman: Anna Záborská
SUGGESTIONS
The Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality calls on the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, as the committee responsible, to incorporate the following suggestions in its motion for a resolution:
– having regard to its resolution of 15 January 2004 on the Communication from the Commission on immigration, integration and employment[1],
A. whereas it should be the task of the European Union, in the interests of the managed migration of workers into the Community and of full employment, to develop a common migration policy in accordance with Community development policy and alongside the effective implementation of the right of freedom of movement of persons within the Community,
B. whereas economic migration is only a part of the solution to the Community's demographic and economic difficulties; whereas, in order to meet the challenges of globalisation, efforts should be made to find new solutions in the field of economic policy and the labour market, notably in relation to the balance between professional and family life for women and men and equal pay for equal jobs,
C. whereas women in many third countries are the victims of similar forms of discrimination,
D. whereas women are a not insignificant and substantial majority of immigrants, including those of second and third generation, asylum seekers and illegal immigrants,
E. whereas women are the victims of discrimination on the basis of both gender and origin, and whereas such discrimination also affects second- and third-generation immigrants, whatever their degree of integration,
1. Calls on the Commission to take greater account during implementation of the 'Community preference' principle of the specific situation of women on the European labour market, particularly in connection with new sources of jobs, so as to facilitate access by women to vacant posts;
2. Notes that legal women immigrants work mainly in grey areas of the economy and undeclared jobs (agriculture, catering, cleaning services, domestic work); calls on the Member States to ensure, by way of the bilateral labour agreements facilitating the admission of third-country nationals, or by other methods, that workers who are admitted work within a secure legal framework in the host countries and do not suffer discrimination, in accordance with Community legislation; considers that transforming undeclared jobs into legal employment is an essential factor in combating illegal economic migration, of which women are frequently the victim;
3. Calls on the Member States to implement measures enabling women who are already on the European labour market and who have an adequate level of basic education to take up vacant posts to undergo transition training;
4. Calls on the Commission, in the context of its obligation to draw up an annual statistical report on immigration with a statistical analysis of the main migration trends in the Member States, to include indicators and reliable and comparative data and information on women economic immigrants in order to gain a specific picture of their position and the problems which they face;
5. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure implementation of the principle of non-discrimination as well as respect for fundamental social and economic rights including equal pay for European workers and migrant workers and for women and men from third countries entering the Community labour market;
6. Points out that unemployment is often higher among women immigrants than among male immigrants; notes that special focus needs to be put on how to better integrate them and make childcare facilities available, together with special cultural and educational meeting points, etc.; considers that, if gender is taken into consideration, work on better integrating immigrants will become more focused and thus more effective;
7. Stresses the importance of readily available and free counselling for immigrant women which is specifically aimed at women and which deals with health, women's rights, employment and other related issues; underlines that such counselling needs to be gender-and culture-sensitive, such as would be the case were it administered by women with knowledge of culture, family patterns and other such information in countries of emigration;
8. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to step up cooperation between Member States and countries of origin and to provide migrants in their country of origin with information on actual prospects and legal requirements in the host country; calls on the Commission and the Member States to upgrade their consular and diplomatic services so as to ensure more efficient management of migration needs and actual requests from businesses in the host country;
9. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to promote gender equality in measures taken in relation to migrant workers, in particular measures concerning integration or re-integration into the local labour market and access to life-long training; calls on the Governments of the Member States to define and cooperate on the development of qualitative and quantitative systems for the regulation of legal entry into the Community which can be discussed with those countries of origin and transit which experience the main flows of illegal immigration, in order to establish partnerships with such countries with a view to drawing up agreements on readmission, management of migratory flows, and the combating of illegal immigration;
10. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to pay special attention to the specific situation of women migrants with dependent children, particularly as regards their rights under temporary contracts of employment;
11. Calls on the Member States to take the necessary steps to facilitate the economic, social and cultural integration of both male and female migrants through inter alia familiarisation with the language and fundamental values of the host country.
PROCEDURE
|
Title |
An EU approach to managing economic migration | |||||
|
Procedure number |
||||||
|
Committee responsible |
LIBE | |||||
|
Committee asked for its opinion |
FEMM | |||||
|
Enhanced cooperation |
No | |||||
|
Drafts(wo)man |
Anna Záborská | |||||
|
Discussed in committee |
14.7.2005 |
|
|
|
| |
|
Date suggestions adopted |
14.7.2005 | |||||
|
Result of final vote |
for: against: abstentions: |
21 3 4 | ||||
|
Members present for the final vote |
Edit Bauer, Emine Bozkurt, Hiltrud Breyer, Edite Estrela, Věra Flasarová, Nicole Fontaine, Lissy Gröner, Zita Gurmai, María Esther Herranz García, Anneli Jäätteenmäki, Lívia Járóka, Rodi Kratsa-Tsagaropoulou, Urszula Krupa, Pia Elda Locatelli, Angelika Niebler, Marie Panayotopoulos-Cassiotou, Amalia Sartori, Eva-Britt Svensson, Konrad Szymański, Anna Záborská | |||||
|
Substitutes present for the final vote |
Katerina Batzeli, Jillian Evans, Sophia in 't Veld, Karin Jöns, Karin Resetarits, Zuzana Roithová, Marta Vincenzi | |||||
|
Substitutes under Rule 178(2) present for the final vote |
Zita Pleštinská (instead of Piia-Noora Kauppi) | |||||
- [1] OJ C 92 E, 16.4.2004, p. 390.
PROCEDURE
|
Title |
An EU approach to managing economic migration (COM (2004)0811) | |||||||||||
|
Procedure number |
||||||||||||
|
Basis in Rules of Procedure |
Rule 45 | |||||||||||
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Committee responsible |
LIBE | |||||||||||
|
Committee(s) asked for opinion(s) |
FEMM |
CULT |
EMPL |
INTA |
DEVE AFET | |||||||
|
Not delivering opinion(s) |
CULT |
EMPL |
AFET |
|
| |||||||
|
Enhanced cooperation |
|
|
|
|
| |||||||
|
Motion(s) for resolution(s) included in report |
|
|
| |||||||||
|
Rapporteur(s) |
Ewa Klamt |
| ||||||||||
|
Previous rapporteur(s) |
|
| ||||||||||
|
Discussed in committee |
12.7.2005 |
13.9.2005 |
5.10.2005 |
|
| |||||||
|
Date adopted |
5.10.2005 | |||||||||||
|
Result of final vote |
for: against: abstentions: |
27 23 1 | ||||||||||
|
Members present for the final vote |
Alexander Nuno Alvaro, Roberta Angelilli, Alfredo Antoniozzi, Edit Bauer, Johannes Blokland, Mihael Brejc, Giusto Catania, Carlos Coelho, Agustín Díaz de Mera García Consuegra, Rosa Díez González, Kinga Gál, Patrick Gaubert, Elly de Groen-Kouwenhoven, Adeline Hazan, Lívia Járóka, Ewa Klamt, Magda Kósáné Kovács, Ole Krarup, Wolfgang Kreissl-Dörfler, Barbara Kudrycka, Stavros Lambrinidis, Henrik Lax, Raffaele Lombardo, Sarah Ludford, Edith Mastenbroek, Jaime Mayor Oreja, Hartmut Nassauer, Athanasios Pafilis, Bogdan Pęk, Lapo Pistelli, Martine Roure, Inger Segelström, Frank Vanhecke, Ioannis Varvitsiotis, Manfred Weber, Stefano Zappalà, Tatjana Ždanoka | |||||||||||
|
Substitutes present for the final vote |
Frederika Brepoels, Koenraad Dillen, Giovanni Claudio Fava, Ignasi Guardans Cambó, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, Luis Herrero-Tejedor, Sophia in 't Veld, Bill Newton Dunn, Cem Özdemir, Marie-Line Reynaud, Rainer Wieland | |||||||||||
|
Substitutes under Rule 178(2) present for the final vote |
Luis Manuel Capoulas Santos, Iratxe García Pérez, Francisca Pleguezuelos Aguilar | |||||||||||
|
Date tabled – A6 |
7.10.2005 |
A6-0286/2005 | ||||||||||