Solidarity in action

The European Parliament, the Council of Ministers and the European Commission have finally approved the Rapid Intervention Team. This means that our voice is being heard and action has been taken to start patrolling the seas and assist in the handling of irregular migrants.

This means that, for the first time, the Maltese government will have new tools to assist it. In case of an emergency, countries such as Malta will be given the needed aid.

This shows the commitment European Commissioner Franco Frattini has in regard of this issue. During an informal meeting with the EU Ministers for Justice in Dresden back in January, he stated that "without the solidarity of all EU member states, the situation may even worsen" in countries such as Malta, Spain, Greece and Italy.

Back in November, Mr Frattini answered a query I made regarding the fight against illegal migration and various measures have since been taken to assist the member states.

Migration is a key issue for the European Union. With the approval of the budget for 2007 - 2013, the Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security has been allocated almost €4 billion for migration issues.

The migration funding, over €300 million in 2007 alone, will help the Commission and member states work together on wide-ranging migration issues - including fighting illegal immigration, enhancing dialogue with third countries, addressing the root causes of migration, tapping the potential of migration and respecting citizens' and migrants' fundamental rights.

The funding programme is categorised in four types of funds: The External Borders Fund, the European Refugee Fund, the Return Fund and the Integration Fund.

The External Borders Fund establishes a financial solidarity mechanism to support the states that endure, for the benefit of the Community, a lasting and heavy financial burden arising from the control and surveillance of external borders and visa policy.

This programme is supported by €1,820 million for the period 2007- 2013 and is divided as follows:

• €1,533 million for external border control and visa policy;
• €109 million (six per cent of the total annual resources each year) for Community actions;
• €108 million for the Kaliningrad transit schemes implemented by Lithuania;
• €70 million (€10 million each year) for specific actions addressing weaknesses at strategic border points at the external borders because of risk analyses carried out by the Frontex agency.

The second programme is the European Refugee Fund. Its general objective is to support and improve the efforts of member states when handling large flows of asylum seekers.

The new ERF will be applicable as of January 1, 2008 and will have a funding of €628 million for the period 2008 - 2013, divided as follows:

• €566 million distributed among the states on the basis of the number of asylum seekers and integrating persons benefiting from international protection.
• €62 million (10 per cent of the total annual resources each year) for community actions, with a particular emphasis on supporting practical cooperation between member states.

An important part when dealing with migration is the return factor. The Commission, as part of its funding, is providing financial aid to support the efforts by member states to improve the management of return. The fund will cover actions relating to voluntary return of persons who are not under an obligation to leave the territory, such as applicants for asylum who have not yet received negative decisions or persons enjoying international protection.

This fund, that will have a budget of €676 million for the period 2008 - 2013, is divided in seven per cent of the total annual resources each year: €47 million, for community action, and €629 million on return measures.

A fundamental part for common growth in this funding is the integration section. This section assists refugees and migrants to fulfil the conditions of residence and to facilitate their integration into European societies.

It will also support enhancing the capacity of member states to develop, implement, monitor and evaluate in general all integration strategies, policies and measures for third country nationals and the exchange of information, best practice and cooperation in and between member states.

The budget of €825 million is divided in €768 million based on legally staying third country nationals in member states and €57 million for Community actions.

This is what makes the EU such a wonderful experience. When solidarity is needed, member states are not left alone. These funds will help us work more efficiently to fight human trafficking and assist people who are really in need.

It was only thanks to our accession to the EU that we could now access the funding we need to be able to protect human life and freedom. With this support, we will be able to enhance our protection of the needy while fighting criminals.

Mr Casa is a Nationalist member of the European Parliament.

david.casa@europarl.europa.eu, www.davidcasa.eu