Buttiglione faces grilling

Incoming EU Justice and Security Commissioner Rocco Buttiglione faces a grilling in the European Parliament today after he advocated creating reception centres for asylum seekers outside the European Union.

Civil libertarians will also quiz Mr Buttiglione, European affairs minister in Italy's centre-right government, on Rome's new policy of airlifting would-be asylum seekers who land on its south Mediterranean island of Lampedusa back to Libya.

And he will be challenged to explain Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's poor record of implementing key EU anti-terrorism measures, including a landmark European arrest warrant.

Mr Buttiglione, 56, an owlish cigar-chomping academic who chairs the Democratic Union of the Centre (UDC) party and is close to Pope John Paul, is one of the few commissioners to have spoken out about his portfolio before taking office.

His endorsement of German-Italian proposals for so-called immigration "gateways" in north Africa outraged human rights groups which see the initiative as creating migrant camps in poor countries to keep refugees far from Europe.

Graham Watson, leader of the centrist Liberal Democrat group in the EU assembly, last month vowed Mr Buttiglione would face "a rocky ride" - a play on the Italian politician's nickname - over his support for the plans.

The EU only began closer cooperation on crime fighting, asylum and immigration in 1999 and progress has been slow because of the need for unanimity on each decision.

The biggest breakthrough since then was the arrest warrant, agreed in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, to replace lengthy extradition procedures among EU member states.

All EU states except Italy and the Czech Republic have implemented the measure, which took effect on January 1.

Socialists in the EU assembly have said they also want to quiz Mr Buttiglione on the Berlusconi government's record of blocking legislation to prevent racism and xenophobia.

The Italian coalition includes the regionalist Northern League, regarded by critics as xenophobic.