Brussels, 08/05/2008 (Agence Europe) - The EU has not managed to reach agreement on the returns directive, blocked by 11 member states which want to toughen up the compromise text that the Slovenian Presidency came up with on 23 April. EU Ambassadors meeting on Wednesday 7 May were unable to reach a qualified majority decision on the proposal which seeks to harmonise the rules on detaining and deporting illegal immigrants (see EUROPE 9657).
Only Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain and Luxemburg came out unequivocally in favour of the Presidency's compromise. Ten delegations expressed fundamental reservations on the text, while Belgium raised a provisional reservation while awaiting a common position from its government. Germany and France brought their weight to bear against the text, with their delegations being the first to speak and place their reservations, a diplomat said. The proposal provides for a third country national who, it has been decided, is to be deported, having a right of appeal before a competent, impartial authority. If the third country national concerned does not have sufficient means to pay for legal representation, free legal aid should be provided by the member state. Germany, Austria, Greece and Lithuania are not happy about having to bear this cost. The decision to deport should provide for a period of between seven and thirty days for voluntary departure. The Czech Republic, Hungary and Italy feel this period is too long. Member states are able, where necessary, to extend the period for voluntary return for an appropriate length of time, taking account of the specific circumstances of the individual case, for example if there is a child attending school. France would like to see a re-wording of this measure so as not to have to wait until the end of the school year before implementing the decision to deport. Austria, Poland, Malta and the Czech Republic believe that putting in place an effective forced return monitoring system is too restrictive.
“The Presidency has handled things badly, since, over and above the reservations expressed, several member states did not seem prepared as ministers had not all had the opportunity to study the text,” a diplomat said, pointing out that, in fact, only a “few adjustments” had to be made to the text. The Presidency said that it would give further consideration on how to proceed. In other words, either it will put a new text to the Coreper in about ten days time, or it will await the Parliament's position (co-decision), scheduled for 4 June, before sending the issue directly to the Justice and Home Affairs Council of 5-6 June. The Commission expects that, if there is no first reading adoption, the Council and Parliament positions will become entrenched, which could delay the adoption of the directive by two years. With various NGOs critical of the directive, even referring to it as the “directive of shame”, a Commission spokesman Friso Roscam Abbing said that this was a “distorted” view of reality. “Not returning illegal immigrants undermines credibility and weakens public support for immigration policies,” he said. (B.C.)