€628 million budget for refugee fund

The European Commission yesterday adopted an amended proposal for the European Refugee Fund moved by Justice, Freedom and Security Commissioner Franco Frattini to ensure strong financial support to EU member states to address pressures arising from illegal immigration.

This includes resettling persons in need of international protection, enhancing cooperation and putting into practice burden-sharing operations.

A total of €628 million - equivalent to Lm260 million - will be made available during 2008-2013.

According to the proposal, which still has to get the green light from the European Council and the European Parliament, the European Refugee Fund will provide a comprehensive and well targeted financial support to EU member states to improve the quality of decision-making in the framework of the Common European Asylum System and to respond to the pressures they are confronted with when faced with sudden mass arrivals of asylum seekers.

The money will assist member states to resettle refugees whose life, liberty, safety, health or other fundamental human rights are at risk and to implement, within the EU, burden-sharing operations consisting in the transfer of beneficiaries of international protection from one member state to another.

Mr Frattini said the burden sharing mechanism puts in practice the notion of solidarity between member states in the area of asylum.

"As illustrated by recent events in the Canary Islands, the Sicilian island of Lampedusa and Malta, sudden mass arrivals of asylum seekers put a great strain on member states' reception facilities and asylum systems.

"The EU should be able to offer these member states rapid and easily accessible financial assistance to carry out emergency measures," Mr Frattini said.