Brussels, 14/09/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 14 September, the Committee of the Regions (CoR) restated their argument that local and regional authorities should be more closely involved in EU migration policies and expressed support for the principle of solidarity and equitable sharing of responsibilities among the member states.
This position was expressed through the adoption by the citizenship, governance, institutional and external affairs (CIVEX) commission of the draft opinion on the European migration agenda, following lengthy consideration of 65 amendments.
The report's author, François Decoster (ALDE, France), said ahead of the vote that the text contained three main points: - the importance of the principle of solidarity, not only with those in need but also with local authorities; - relocation of refugees among the member states; - and support for local authorities in dealing with the influxes of refugees.
The draft opinion emphasises in particular the need to involve local and regional authorities more in both discussions - for example, on the resettlement of the 40,000 migrants, and implementation of the measures agreed, for example, with regard to management of refugee camps, where they call for additional funding and greater logistical capacity. In this, the authorities are calling for European funds to be used as quickly as possible in response to the urgency of the situation.
The legal basis for the action being taken by the EU was challenged. CIVEX calls for Article 80 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU), which provides for solidarity among member states, to be used rather than Article 78.3, which relates to emergency mechanisms in times of migratory stress (see EUROPE 11386).
Philippe de Bruycker of the Free University of Brussels said that using Article 80 would have made the solidarity principle obligatory. He said, too, in the course of the debate prior to voting, that he could not understand the reasons for the EU's inability swiftly to put in place refugee reception centres. The United Nations human rights commission was able to do so “in only a few days”, he noted.
Firm measures are also suggested in the draft opinion, such as setting up humanitarian corridors that would end the trafficking of migrants, posting of police officers and administrative staff from one region to another at times of exceptional influxes, and better articulation between the existing systems and bodies, such as Frontex and Europol.
Despite adoption of the draft opinion by the CIVEX committee, positions varied widely depending on where the commission members came from, with the representatives of the western regions being much keener on the European agenda that those of the east, among whom, and particularly those from Hungary and Slovakia, a degree of disquiet was evident, a source told EUROPE. The members of the ECR Group decided not to support Decoster's draft opinion.
Make use of non-absorbed funds. The Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR) wrote last week to Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, calling for European funding for the 2007-2013 period, “that may be lost if not used up by the end of the year”, to be diverted to address the migratory crisis. This is a call that will be difficult to satisfy, it is being suggested at the Commission since, firstly, this would run counter to the aid delivered by the Commission to the member states that are having difficulty absorbing the funding and, secondly, it is difficult to re-programme structural funding which, “by its nature focuses, on structural and non-cyclical issues”.
The European migration agenda will be discussed by local and regional players during the 2015 Open Days in Brussels from 12 to 15 October. The CoR will put the draft opinion to the vote in the plenary session at the start of December. (Pascal Hansens)