Debate on the European Agenda on Migration during the EP plenary session in Strasbourg. Statements by the Council and Commission. Statements by Zanda KALNIŅA-LUKAŠEVICA, Latvian Presidency of the Council, Frans TIMMERMANS, Vice-President of the EC in charge of better regulation, interinstitutional relations, the rule of law and the charter of fundamental rights, and Dimitris AVRAMOPOULOS, Member of the EC in charge of Interior, Migration and Citizenship

statement

Strasbourg

plenary session

TIMMERMANS, Frans (NL, EC)

migration and refugees in Europe (T)

AVRAMOPOULOS, Dimitris (EL, EC)

KALNIŅA-LUKAŠEVICA, Zanda (LV)

European Agenda on Migration: extracts from the Council and Commission statements

External shot of the EP building in Strasbourg. 1 shot.

SOUNDBITE (English), Zanda KALNI&#325;A-LUKA&#352;EVICA, Latvian Presidency of the Council, "There is time for words and there is time for deeds and I am very proud that today I can speak about concrete actions, the European Council and the Council have taken recently in response to the dramatic loss of lives by those seeking shelter in Europe."

SOUNDBITE (English), Zanda KALNI&#325;A-LUKA&#352;EVICA, Latvian Presidency of the Council, "The policy debate, covering both immediate and mid-term measures, will serve as a contribution to the debate of the heads of state and government in the June European Council."

SOUNDBITE (English), Frans TIMMERMANS, Vice-President of the EC, "Later on we will come back to your to codecide a standing mechanism for relocation that is automatically triggered whenever there are these extreme crisis situations. And let me underline this: this is not about migration in general it is about extreme crisis situations that demand a clear response."

SOUNDBITE (English), Frans TIMMERMANS, Vice-President of the EC, "Everyone who needs sanctuary should find it in Europe. But those who have no justified claim should be quickly identified and quickly returned to their home country."

SOUNDBITE (English), Frans TIMMERMANS, Vice-President of the EC, "It is not acceptable for people to say 'we want you to stop people from drowning' but at the same time stay silent on where these people should go once they have been rescued. What the Commission is doing today is putting in practice the committment the European Council made last month: more responsibility and effective application of our common rules to prevent abuses, going hand in hand with more solidarity."

SOUNDBITE (English), Frans TIMMERMANS, Vice-President of the EC, "I know these are challenging proposals. I know they will prompt debates and controversy in Member States. But it's really not acceptable for people around the EU to say 'stop the drowning' and, at the same time, to say 'but don't bring the people here'."

SOUNDBITE (English), Dimitris AVRAMOPOULOS, Member of the EC in charge of Interior, Migration and Citizenship, "70,000 asylum applications are already launched every month in the European Union since the beginning of 2015. More than 80,000 migrants have reached our shore. And let me be clear, this is not due to any pull factor, this is because our immediate neighbourhood is on fire."

SOUNDBITE (English), Dimitris AVRAMOPOULOS, Member of the EC in charge of Interior, Migration and Citizenship, "Next week the Commission will propose the triggering of Article 78, paragraph 3, of the Treaty, an emergency mechanism that was exactly thought for the situations such as those we are suffering today: 'a sudden inflow of nationals of third countries'. The mechanism will allow transferring those who are in clear need of protection from the frontline states towards the other member states."

SOUNDBITE (English), Dimitris AVRAMOPOULOS, Member of the EC incharge of Interior, Migration and Citizenship, "The European Union's demographic and skills needs mean that legal migration will be a necessary part of our future. So the Commission intends to develop a new policy on legal migration starting with the revision of the Blue Card Directive".