Brussels, 22/09/2011 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 22 September, the European Parliament's committee on budgets approved the Council's position on the draft amending budget No4/2011 which, given the events in the southern Mediterranean (“Arab Spring”), will provide additional funding in 2011 for the management of migratory flows and flows of refugees.
The budgets committee thus approves the release of an additional €52.2 million in commitment appropriations and €43.9 million in payment appropriations for the management of migratory flows, with a view to supporting member states affected by strong migratory pressure due to the recent developments in countries of the southern Mediterranean.
Thus, €22.2 million in commitments and €19.9 million in payments will be used to reinforce the EU's external borders, the European Return Fund and the European Refugee Fund to finance transnational actions in emergency situations. Frontex, the EU's border security agency, will receive €30 million in commitments and €24 million in payments to strengthen its maritime surveillance capability. The additional funding will come from redeployment of funds unspent initially allocated to energy projects as part of the European plan for economic recovery. (LC/transl.jl)