Presseraum 

MEPs call for new EU rules on legal labour migration to respond to Europe’s demographic challenges and to effectively match immigrants’ skills with labour market needs.

In order to control the COVID-19 pandemic, preventive measures have to be applied to everyone, including asylum-seekers living in overcrowded hotspots on the Greek islands.

Ministers outlined the priorities of the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the EU to parliamentary committees, in a series of meetings.

Europol should have access to fingerprints and names of asylum seekers; refugee children should be fingerprinted to keep them safe from traffickers, MEPs say.

Following recent developments in the investigation into the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia in 2017, MEPs visited Malta between 3-4 December to take stock of the situation on the ground.

Civil Liberties MEPs agreed to start negotiations with EU ministers to revise time limits and conditions for passport controls within the Schengen area.

MEPs are disappointed with Facebook for not sending the requested speakers to the second hearing looking into the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica scandal on Monday 25 June.

All EU countries must share responsibility for hosting asylum seekers arriving in Europe. So it follows those that refuse to do so should not get solidarity funding from other EU member states, Cecilia Wikström (ALDE, SE), lead MEP on the reform the Dublin asylum system told the Civil Liberties Committee on Thursday.

Facebook has sent a first set of replies to the EP President on a number of outstanding questions left unanswered at the meeting between EP leaders and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

The EU Commission and member states will be able to reimpose visa requirements faster and more easily under new rules agreed by Parliament and Council negotiators on Wednesday.

The EU must help member states at the external borders to manage migration flows and ensure that those seeking protection are welcomed in line with its core values.

On Wednesday, EP and Council reached a political agreement over the budgetary priorities of EU asylum, migration and integration policies over the next seven years.

On Monday Civil Liberties MEPs confirmed with 54 votes in favour, 13 against and 1 abstention their agreement to a new instrument to address dissemination of terrorist content online.

On Thursday, the organisers of “Minority Safepack” presented their objectives at a hearing organised by the Civil Liberties, Culture and Petitions committees.

On Monday, in a debate with Commissioner Reynders and Minister Tuppurainen, committee MEPs condemned the lack of progress in ongoing processes and asked for a permanent EU-wide mechanism.

Plans to update rules on the use and sale of chemicals that could be used to make homemade explosives were backed by the Civil Liberties Committee on Monday.

The certificate will facilitate free movement without discrimination and contribute to the EU’s economic recovery.

Die Abgeordneten fordern die EU-Staats- und Regierungschefs auf, eine Lösung für die derzeitige Sackgasse bei der Migrations- und Asylfrage zu finden.

EU-Länder, die sich weigern, Asylbewerber aufzunehmen, sollten nur noch beschränkt auf EU-Mittel zugreifen können, heißt es im Beschluss der Abgeordneten über neue Dublin-Vorschriften.

Most of the one million-plus migrants and refugees who travelled to the European Union in 2015 came via Turkey. There are now more than 2.5 million refugees in Turkey itself. At the end of November 2015, the EU and Turkey struck a deal to try to control migrant flows into Europe. Turkey in return is to receive an extra €3 billion from the EU budget and member states in order to support refugees in the country.