European Parliament approves immigration reform

The European Parliament has approved sweeping reforms to the EU's immigration and asylum policy.

Yesterday, Wednesday, April 10, the European Parliament approved extensive reforms to the EU's immigration and asylum policy.

After a decade of wrangling over the terms of the new treaty, the European Parliament's centrist faction yesterday overcame the far right and far left to hammer out a new migration pact. The agreement must be approved by all 27 EU members, and a vote is likely to take place later this month.

Euronews wrote about the decision: “The new pact, which includes five detailed sets of separate but interlinked immigration and asylum laws, still needs the final green light from member states to enter into force, which is expected to happen by the end of this month. Under the pact, the reception and settlement of refugees will be managed collectively and more predictably among members. The five laws received an average of 300 votes in favor and 270 against.”

EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson said of the decision: "With the new package, the EU's external borders, vulnerable people and refugees will be better protected, and those who are not eligible for residence will be returned quickly." German Chancellor Olaf Schulz also called the decision a historic and necessary step for the EU.

Meanwhile, after the European Parliament approved the treaty, dozens of demonstrators protested the European legislative vote outside the European Parliament building in Brussels. Amnesty International also issued a statement calling the decision "shameful" and saying, "Europe knows this will cause greater human suffering." The International Federation of the Red Cross also warned about the consequences of this resolution on the situation of refugees.

In addition to Amnesty International, dozens of other charities, including Oxfam and Caritas, criticized these changes, calling them dangerous, and stated in an open letter during the negotiations that the agreement establishes an oppressive structure that is unworkable.

Hungary's right-wing and populist Prime Minister Viktor Orban is an opponent of the new reforms, and after the European Parliament's resolution was finalized, he considered it another nail in the coffin of the European Union.

The pact's measures are set to come into effect in 2026 after the European Commission outlines how it will be implemented in the coming months. Under the reforms, border centres would have to hold irregular migrants until their asylum applications are processed, and the deportation of those whose applications are rejected would be accelerated.