Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-11-13-Speech-2-253"
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"en.20071113.30.2-253"2
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"Mr President, improving migration management in the Mediterranean region will certainly be one of the priorities for the EU and its Euromed partners. Too many people are drowning, and we are not benefiting sufficiently from the potential that well-managed migration can bring.
Finally, I believe that the ministers will be successful in identifying concrete areas for cooperation. The Commission stands ready to support the implementation process, including in financial terms. We are committed to supporting such actions through the MEDA Programme, as well as the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument and the new thematic programmes.
At the summit in 2005, which was just mentioned, the Euromed Heads of State and Government adopted a work programme that set goals for cooperation on migration, social integration, justice and security. Now, thanks to the excellent initiative taken by the Portuguese Presidency, ministers responsible for migration will have the opportunity to take the next steps in making the cooperation more concrete. It promises to be a big milestone. I welcome the Presidency’s emphasis on concrete operational outcomes from the conference, because our citizens want to see very concrete results.
The three themes for this meeting are well balanced and fully in line with the global approach. First of all, legal migration: we live in a world of increasing mobility, and well-managed migration is in the interests of all partners. The European Union needs migration in full respect of the law. The need for workers in many Member States of the EU is already evident, for example, in agriculture, health care and tourism. However, the European Union needs to be able to manage and integrate these migrants. We need to match skills better than in the past and we have to prepare migrants for their life in the EU and their eventual return if their migration is temporary or circular in nature. No migratory strategy is possible unless a European policy towards integrating migrants who live and work in the EU is in full respect of the law.
We will be discussing how to use the European Integration Fund that, for the first time, is available in the EU, thanks to a proposal made a year and a half ago by the Commission and endorsed by the Council and this Parliament. We need to make Europe more attractive to legal migrants. Our recent proposal for a European ‘Blue Card’ for highly skilled migrants is the first example and relevant to the Euromed context.
Next year’s legislative initiatives for unskilled and seasonal migrants and remunerated trainees will follow. The proposals to launch discussions on these matters with our Euromed partners seem to me logical and timely.
The second point is migration and development. In order to be successful in managing migration, we must also address the main roots of migration, such as economic disparity, lack of career opportunities, instability, poor governance etc. Good cooperation with partner countries and detailed knowledge of the situation on the ground in terms of labour needs, skilled shortages and capacity-building requirements are essential to this effort. That is why ministers will discuss with the Commission the concrete proposals on migrant remittances and how they could be made more productive for development – a debate that is to be welcomed.
The third area of discussion is illegal migration, because to be comprehensive we must also tackle illegal migration and protect European external borders.
Our Euromed partners are countries of destination, transit and origin. We should aim to establish cooperation to prevent people drowning at sea. At the Euromed Conference we will be talking with ministers about cooperation and a possible new role for Frontex in search and rescue activities, not only in patrolling and the return of illegal migrants. In doing so, we need to ensure that we respect our obligations when it comes to international protection and human rights. We would support a development whereby Frontex becomes a tool of support for third countries in their efforts to better manage migration and control their borders by fully respecting international obligations.
We are looking forward to this ministerial meeting. Migration is a subject of vital interest to us all, and that raises strong passions at Member State and Community level. It is no different in our partner countries. However, working together is the only way to move forward. I would say cooperation alone is no longer sufficient. We need partnership based on shared goals and on equality of all partners. We need political packages, including measures to improve both the movement of honest people and respect of national and European laws, and to increase local growth rates in the origin countries."@en1
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