In a decision delivered on Wednesday 6 September in Cases C- 643/15 and C-647/15, the European Court of Justice dismissed the entire basis of the appeals brought by Slovakia and Hungary against the provisional mechanism for the mandatory relocation of asylum seekers enabling Greece and Italy to deal with the impact of the 2015 migration crisis in an effective proportionate way.
In response to the migration crisis that affected Europe in the summer of 2015, the Council of the European Union adopted a provisional decision (2015/1601) to help Italy and Greece deal with the inflow of 120,000 asylum seekers between 25 September 2015 and 26 September 2017 (see EUROPE 11394).
In the appeals proceedings before the Court, Poland intervened in support of Slovakia and Hungary, which had called for this decision to be annulled due to the errors of a procedural nature and the fact that it was an unsuitable response to the purpose of resolving the migrant crisis.
The decision takes into account the entirety of the conclusion delivered at the end of July by Advocate General Yves Bot (see EUROPE 11837). The Court considers that the Council of the EU had taken action on the basis of Article 78 TFEU and was right to adopt a decision instead of beginning a lengthier legislative procedure involving the European Parliament, as co—legislator. The adoption of this kind of decision was therefore not subject to the requirements related to the participation of national parliaments.
In substance, the Court believes the contested mechanism constitutes an appropriate and proportionate measure for attaining the objective set out by the Council at the time of its adoption, namely, showing solidarity with Greece and Italy at a time of a massive influx of refugees into the EU. It considers that the low number of relocations that have been carried out in a period that will soon be close to 2 years – fewer than 28,000 – in application of the contested decision, could not be foreseen by the Council in September 2015 and that this lack of foresight was mainly due to the lack of cooperation by certain member states.
On 4 September, 27,695 people (19,244 from Greece and 8,451 from Italy) had been relocated, according to figures published that day by the European Commission (see other article). The latter welcomes the progress achieved in this area at an EU level since the beginning of 2017, particularly through the relocations currently being prepared by Italy to Slovakia. On the other hand, three countries are still failing to meet their legal obligations and have not relocated anyone (Hungry and Poland) or have offered any new places for more than a year (Czech Republic).
In the immediate response provided by the Hungarian government, it said that it did not feel obliged to respect the new European jurisprudence. According to AP, the Hungarian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Peter Szijjarto, described the court ruling as “scandalous” and “irresponsible” according to a press release from the Hungarian authorities. He added that, "The real battle is only just beginning and Hungary will use all the different possibilities available to make a legal appeal to guarantee that no one is relocated in Hungary against the wishes of the Hungarian people". The Hungarian Minister for Justice, László Trócsányi, also highlighted the danger at a European level of a permanent asylum seeker relocation mechanism, which he believed was "unacceptable". On the other hand, although the Slovakian government still disagrees with the substance of the decision, it indicated that it would attempt to fully respect to the verdict of the Court.
Satisfaction at EU level
All the different figures who responded to the Court ruling called on the member states that have failed to meet their obligations in this area to take in the asylum seekers from Greece and Italy.
This decision reconfirms that in September 2015 there was a “real migration emergency” and that the measures that we put on the table at the time were “appropriate”, according to the European Commissioner for Migration, Dimitis Avramopoulos. He added that, “all member states must focus now on their relocation commitments”.
Speaking on behalf of the European Parliament, its President, Antonio Tajani, provided a similar response.
The President of the EPP group, Manfred Weber, interpreted the Court’s ruling as “a real chance to heal the wounds” that the member states have inflicted on migration questions and he is convinced that, “it is only through cooperation that migration flows can be controlled”.
Mr Weber’s counterpart at the S&D group, Gianni Pittella from Italy said that the former should exclude the Fidesz party of the Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orban, from the European People’s Party. According to Mr Pittella, the Commission should punish all countries that failed to relocate asylum seekers on their respective territories. He also said that, “We must also finally reform the Dublin system (...) and replace it with a centralised European system that allocates refugees in a fair and transparent way”.
Parliament's rapporteur on refugee relocation issues, Ska Keller (Greens/EFA, Germany), resumed one of the ideas expressed on a number of occasions during the day, “Solidarity in the EU is not a one-way street. Government leaders such as Viktor Orbán cannot demand more money for border protection, while blocking the reception of refugees from Greece and Italy”. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)