Commission welcomes the major progress achieved by Parliament and Council on the New Pact on Migration and Asylum

December 21, 2023 by European Union Leave a Comment

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.

The political agreement reached today by the European Parliament and the Council on the Pact on Migration and Asylum constitutes a major breakthrough towards a common system for managing migration in the EU.

The agreement covers five key proposals of the Pact:

Screening Regulation: creating uniform rules concerning the identification of non-EU nationals upon their arrival, thus increasing the security within the Schengen area.
Eurodac Regulation: developing a common database gathering more accurate and complete data to detect unauthorised movements.
Asylum Procedures Regulation: making asylum, return and border procedures quicker and more effective.
Asylum Migration Management Regulation: establishing a new solidarity mechanism amongst Member States to balance the current system where a few countries are responsible for the vast majority of asylum applications, and clear rules on responsibility for asylum applications.
Crisis and Force majeure Regulation: ensuring that the EU is prepared in the future to face situations of crisis, including instrumentalisation of migrants.

Once these proposals are formally adopted by the European Parliament and Council, the pillars of the New Pact on Migration and Asylum will be in place.

The Commission presented the New Pact on Migration and Asylum in September 2020, with the aim of finding long-term and sustainable solutions to managing migration. The Pact will create a legal framework that balances solidarity and responsibility between Member States, in a comprehensive approach to managing migration effectively and fairly .

President Ursula von der Leyen said: “Europe is a strong community and capable of finding great answers to great challenges. I welcome the timely political agreement reached by Parliament and Council on the key elements of the New Pact on Migration and Asylum. Our goal was to find a fair and pragmatic approach to managing migration together in the EU. It is a crucial step in making sure that Europe has the tools to manage migration.”

The agreement reached today reflects the commitment to manage migration in a fair and orderly way, allowing the Union and its Member States to move from ad-hoc to long-term and sustainable solutions. Until these new rules are fully applicable, the Commission stands ready to continue working with the European Parliament and the Council. The scope is clear, to ensure adoption on all Pact files by the end of this legislative mandate.

Quote(s)

Europe is a strong community and capable of finding great answers to great challenges. I welcome the timely political agreement reached by Parliament and Council on the key elements of the New Pact on Migration and Asylum. Our goal was to find a fair and pragmatic approach to managing migration together in the EU. It is a crucial step in making sure that Europe has the tools to manage migration.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission – 20/12/2023

Today’s historical agreement is a proud testament to the fact that Europe can deliver solutions on the issues that matter most to citizens. The Pact is a series of sensible and indispensable measures to manage migration in a predictable and more effective manner. All of these measures will reduce pressure on the EU and prevent loss of life.
Margaritis Schinas, Vice-President for Promoting our European Way of Life – 20/12/2023

Today’s breakthrough on the Pact shows our commitment to move forward together even on the most complex issues and remain true to our values. We need to manage migration in an orderly way, and we have to do that in a European way. It’s not about winners and losers. By agreeing on a common approach to managing migration in a humane way together, we will all be winners.”
Ylva Johansson, Commissioner for Home Affairs – 20/12/2023

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