On Monday 8 December, the Council of the EU approved by a large majority the draft regulation on the return of people staying illegally in the EU, with only a handful of countries, such as Spain, opposing it.
Adopted in record time - the Commission’s proposal was presented in March - the new regulation aims to speed up and simplify return procedures, at a time when only around 20% of return decisions issued each year by the EU27 are enforced. The Danish Presidency was able to secure an...