EU Interior Ministers Agree On Immigration Information
02:32 PM, October 5th 2006
by Playfuls Team
Playfuls.com
European Union interior ministers meeting in Luxembourg on Thursday adopted a decision on the establishment of a mutual information mechanism concerning member states' measures in the areas of asylum and immigration.
The mechanism foresees EU member states improving efforts to inform fellow EU nations of decisions made at a national level in this area, which may have an effect on fellow EU governments.
The decision was prompted by increased concern over the rising levels of immigration to the EU and especially the bloc's southern states, and follows a dispute last week between Spain and other EU members after Madrid granted 600,000 undocumented immigrants residence permits last year.
Thursday's decision also proposes an annual European Commission report to be compiled on asylum and immigration issues, to be used as a foundation for future European Parliament debates on bloc policy.
The mechanism will allow every member state to judge whether domestic decisions regarding immigration will affect other member states and to inform EU governments accordingly.
Large-scale immigrant amnesties will however be automatically covered under the terms of the agreement. EU immigrants who are granted the right to live in a member are under bloc rules entitled to citizenship in any EU nation.
