Members of the European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties (LIBE) reaffirmed on Wednesday 26 May their commitment to the Schengen area of free movement, which was undermined during the Covid-19 pandemic, criticising the current control measures still in force in some Member States, which are not solely linked to the health context.
The parliamentary committee sent this message by adopting (52 votes in favour, 14 against, 1 abstention) the draft report by Tanja Fajon (S&D, Slovenia) on the annual review of the functioning of the Schengen area.
In the adopted text, the elected representatives consider that “the very concept of Schengen cooperation, that of ensuring the absence of controls at internal borders, has been further challenged by the Covid-19 pandemic”.
Expressing their “concern about the persistent retention of internal border controls by some Member States”, the committee recognises that such controls are possible, as “a measure of last resort, for a limited period of time, and to the extent that the controls are necessary and proportionate”. However, they note that “grounds invoked since 2015 for the persistent retention of internal border controls are not in line with the rules pertaining to their extension, necessity or proportionality”. Even describing these measures, which have been going on for years, as “unlawful”.
The elected representatives acknowledge that “the Commission has tried to coordinate a common European response”, but despite its actions, it has been “slow, even reluctant to initiate infringement proceedings”. They reiterate their request to the European institution “to exercise appropriate scrutiny over the application of the Schengen acquis, to assess whether the principles of necessity and proportionality have been respected and to resort to infringement proceedings if necessary”.
In view of this, MEPs stress that a reform of the Schengen Borders Code is needed to remedy the current state of the area. “Border controls are prolonged by a Member State, additional safeguards should apply and such measures should be withdrawn as soon as the underlying grounds for them cease to exist”, they say.
Furthermore, the elected representatives insist on the need for the Schengen area to function properly at the external borders. They refer to the Frontex agency, whose activities must be fully in line with fundamental rights.
And they call for the full integration of Bulgaria and Romania into the free movement area, noting that both countries have fulfilled the conditions for Schengen membership.
The draft ‘Fajon’ report comes as the Commission will publish on Wednesday 2 June a strategy for preparing the future of the Schengen area and how this area should respond to events such as pandemics. The Commission also wants to strengthen the alternatives to border controls.
Link to the report: https://bit.ly/3hWCymW (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)