New Frontex law approved by EP Civil Liberties Committee
Simon Busuttil
The European Parliament's Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Committee today approved a new law granting Frontex a renewed mandate with more resources and tools at its disposal.
Today's vote is the LIBE committee's stamp of approval to an agreement reached by EP rapporteur Simon Busuttil with the Council of Ministers after six trialogue meetings.
After the vote, Simon Busuttil said:
"We have done our part. Frontex will be up to the task. It will cater for Europe's needs."
This new law will:
• Increase Frontex's visibility by establishing the European Border Guard Teams;
• Strengthen its effectiveness;
• Monitor the protection of human rights, especially of people seeking international protection, throughout the activities of the agency;
• Increase the democratic scrutiny of the agency by the European Parliament.
After six years of Frontex's operations, there was a clear need to review its operations, not least because it failed to live up to its expectations.
"Frontex was asked to start running when it didn't yet know how to walk. The demands put on this agency since its very inception were huge", said Simon Busuttil.
"Sadly, most member states failed to honour their pledges of providing assets for Frontex's missions. I think this was the most pressing issue because it hindered the effectiveness of the agency," the Maltese MEP said.
With this new law, Frontex will now be able to purchase, lease, own and co-own assets.
Furthermore, through compulsory solidarity, member states will be legally bound to honour their commitments for national border guards assigned or seconded to the agency.
Frontex will also have the power to process personal data obtained during missions and use it in the fight against criminality.
"We gave due importance to 'visibility'. The new notion of 'European Border Guards teams' should capture the public's imagination. This is something the previous labels of 'Frontex Joint Support Teams' and 'Rapid Border Intervention Teams (RABITS)' did not manage to achieve."
"Serious accusations have been levelled against Frontex when it came to saving lives at sea. This new law sets up a consultative forum on fundamental rights which will act as a watchdog on Frontex. The new Fundamental Rights Officer, within Frontex, will help it navigate better. But crucially, in the case of a breach of human rights, Frontex missions would be suspended or terminated", Dr Busuttil declared.
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Joe Grech
Jul 13th 2011, 15:07
'"Frontex was asked to start running when it didn't yet know how to walk.", said Simon Busuttil - this is PROOF of the inefficiency of the E.U. top management who stupidly went ahead with the setting up of Frontex without really planning properly for its actual running and its actual raison d'etre'.
Busuttil knows that most E.U. citizens look aghast at our supposed top E.U.personnel who seem only interested in their huge earnings - even as the Euro keeps going down remorselessly!
Simon Busuttil must surely know that what most Maltese, Greeks, Italians, Spaniards, etc want to know is not that Frontex now has ''a renewed mandate with more resources and tools at its disposal.'' We just need to be told exactly WHAT will Fronted be doing....will it be immediately returning all illegal immigrants met on the seas back to their own country or will it stupidly continue to accompany them into European ports like Malta and Lampedusa where they are certainly not welcome except like go-gooders like the local Jesuits who just preach but do not actually help?
Is Busuttil keen on safeguarding Europe from illegal immigration or is he just interested in looking ever more humanitarian putting first and foremost illogical and impractical policies that are proving to be Europe's ruin?
Angels Merkel herself openly stated: 'Multiculturalism has failed dismally' so why is Europe still clinging to that dangerous practice?
I challenge Dr. Simon Busuttil to send in a comment by way of reply.
'
Mr Tony Gatt
Jul 13th 2011, 21:40
I think you've got it right- Frontex is there to safely escort refugees to Lampedusa and Malta. This is just more EU gobbledegook.
Charles Sammut
Jul 13th 2011, 13:18
Il-baħnan taqlgħalu għajnu, jifraħ.
U Simon Busuttil qed jifraħ għax issa ser jerġa jkun hawn ferry service għall-immigrati illegali. Bravu! Kont taqta' figura aħjar kieku qadt sieket.
Ms Louise Vella
Jul 13th 2011, 12:05
Frontex will be judged by its results, that is, by its success or failure to stop the illegal immigrants from arriving in Malta. So far Frontex has served as a ferry service transporting illegal immigrants from the shores of North Africa to the shores of southern Europe. The only policy that helped Malta has been the agreement between Libya and Italy. Libya prevented the boats from leaving its shores. Those which managed to leave anyway were pushed back by the Italians. For more than a year Malta benefitted from a respite as no boatfuls of illegal immigrants arrived. Now that the Libya-Italy agreement is not working, the boats have started coming again. Will Frontex take over from Italy the role of pushing back the unwanted boats? If yes, it will be a success. If not, it will be a failure. So it's far too early for Dr Simon Busuttil to be sending out his victory bulletin. Let's wait, see and judge. And then vote.
Stephen Koludrovic
Jul 13th 2011, 11:44
A few fancy words with absolutely no substance. Might as well use our luzzus instead.
Mr Charles Cremona
Jul 13th 2011, 11:43
Mr Busutill wakes up from time to time trying to justify his vast salary and allowances. He always tries to make it sound as if he was the man behind the Frontex saga but all his fine words always come to nothing. He should do us all a favour and go back to sleep.
Jordan Bonello
Jul 13th 2011, 11:27
Well done goes to the EP for addressing such an important issue. The negative image FRONTEX has developed was mainly caused by its inefficiency. These new goals will help to increase its effectiveness across the EU border and help save lives
Mary Mills
Jul 13th 2011, 11:19
The European Guard teams might act as a deterrent for would-be immigrants who won't strictly be asylum seekers; and they would put off (one expects) the rackeetering /exploitation involved in this business and lessen the loss of lives due to the frighteningly unseaworthy means of transport used.
But we'll also have to wait and see how fair and workable the proposed Common European Asylum System of burden sharing will be - meant to come into force by 2012 - prompting: Will those cumbersome EU institutions manage to pull this off by next year?
R Caruana
Jul 13th 2011, 10:05
Hope frontex work correctly in practice.
Mr twanny borg
Jul 13th 2011, 09:43
il-problema ewlenija hija min se jiehu dawk l-immigranti li jingabru mill-bahar. din hija l-problema tal-frontex. simon tista' twiegeb min?
Stephen Koludrovic
Jul 13th 2011, 12:03
I suppose it will be us again. After all arn't we well known as MALTA HANINA.
Joe Fenech
Jul 13th 2011, 09:43
THE HIPPY WEAKLINGS ARE ON THE LOOSE AGAIN !