During the EP plenary session (11-14 September 2017) in Strasbourg,&nbsp;MEPS debate on the recent developments in migration. Statements by Federica MOGHERINI, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy / Vice-President of the EC, Roberta METSOLA (EPP, MT), Gianni PITTELLA (S&amp;D, IT), Marek JUREK (ECR, PL), Sophia IN'T VELD (ALDE, NL) and Judith SARGENTINI (Greens/EFA, NL).

Strasbourg

debate

plenary session

PITTELLA, Gianni (S&D, IT)

migration and refugees in Europe (T)

MOGHERINI, Federica (IT, EC)

JUREK, Marek (ECR, PL)

SARGENTINI, Judith (Greens/EFA, NL)

METSOLA, Roberta (EPP, MT, EP President)

IN 'T VELD, Sophia (Renew, NL)

Recent developments in Migration: extracts from the debate

SOUNDBITE (English), Federica MOGHERINI, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy / Vice-President of the EC, Finally, the things we have put in place in the last two years are starting to bear fruit. Hundreds of thousands of people have been saved from death. And let me be clear: even one that has not been saved is too much.

SOUNDBITE (English), Federica MOGHERINI, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy / Vice-President of the EC, We have now finally understood not only that we have to act as Europeans altogether, but that we have to act on what we define as the root causes. Poverty, climate change, lack of democratic spaces, violations of human rights, opportunities for life. With our migration compacts we are discussing directly with our partners in Africa. Governments but also local authorities, civil society organisations, international agencies and NGs that are present on the ground how to best invest in the sustainable development of these countries, of these communities.

SOUNDBITE (English), Federica MOGHERINI, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy / Vice-President of the EC, Those in need of protection need to have safe, legal avenues also to Europe. Second, those that are not in need of protection we need to offer them a dignified safe, way to go back home and restart a life.

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Roberta METSOLA (EPP, MT), Within Europe we must ensure that those who are not in need of international protection are returned to their countries of origin. This is essential if we are to direct our resources to give protection to those who need it.

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Gianni PITTELLA (S&amp;D, IT), S&amp;D Group leader, And let us not forget we are talking about organised crime, the Mafia, making money out of human lives. And we have the European Court of Justice that has made it quite clear that the countries that are not playing their part in offering to take refugees must be appropriately sanctioned.

SOUNDBITE (Polish), Marek JUREK (ECR, PL), But please bear in mind that it was the Member States governments and organisations, NGOs that created the demand for the services of all those mafias.

SOUNDBITE (English), Sophia IN&apos;T VELD (ALDE, NL), A solution for migration flows is certainly not dirty deals with shady regimes. Because we are talking about making a deal with Libya, I even read about a statement by President TAJANI suggesting that we should give 6 billion euros to Libya in order to solve our migration issues. I was really wondering on whose behalf he was speaking. I t is certainly not the position of this house as far as I am aware.

SOUNDBITE (Dutch), Judith SARGENTINI (Greens/EFA, NL), There are no international camps in Libya under protection, they just don't exist. There is no reception by international organisations, so we don't exactly know what is happening, but we know that there are rapes, abuses, slave trade, and even murders in detention centres. Can you Mrs MOGHERINI, guarantee that next year we won't be seeing you here again to tell us that something awful has happened to these people in Libya, that we cannot allow to come to our shores or send back?