Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on A Common Immigration Policy for Europe
Date: 2008-11-26
Institutions: European Committee of the Regions
Subjects: EU migration policy, European Committee of the Regions, exchange of information, illegal migration, immigration, integration of migrants

C 76/34

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

31.3.2009

Opinion of the Committee of the Regions on ‘A Common Immigration Policy for Europe’

(2009/C 76/07)

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS

— points out that the Committee of the Regions is prepared to collaborate in drawing up a future

common immigration policy and to contribute to that policy,

— emphasises that local and regional authorities are first to be significantly affected by a common immi-
gration policy. On the one hand, they are particularly affected by the difficulties of illegal immigration,
while, on the other, they are responsible for providing immigrants with a range of services as part of
the local integration process. For this reason they must be fully involved in the development of a
European framework for legal immigration, in measures to combat illegal immigration and in develop-
ment cooperation with countries of origin,

— points to the great importance of migrants in the light of their contribution to the socio-economic
development of the EU. To ensure the international competitiveness of the European Economic Area,
the attractiveness of the EU must be perceptibly improved, so that greater use is made of local and
regional capacity,

— notes that the Member States' competence for stipulating how many third-country nationals may
enter their territory to seek work there as employees or self-employed workers provides a way of
taking national and regional labour market needs into account,

— recognises the crucial importance of mastering the official language or languages of the host country.
is facilitated by early acquisition of the official
level

integration at local and regional

Successful
language(s),

— stresses that there is a relationship between illegal and legal immigration and that combating illegal
immigration is of key importance for framing a policy on legal migration. On the one hand, the fight
against illegal immigration must be consistent and comprehensive, so as to effectively combat often
organised criminal structures. On the other hand, steps must be taken to facilitate legal migration
where there are labour shortages or where the main purpose is the exchange and transfer of
knowledge or further training of migrants during a limited stay.

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Rapporteur: Werner JOSTMEIER (DE/EPP), Member of the North Rhine-Westphalia Landtag

Reference documents

Communication from the Commission: Towards a Common Immigration Policy

COM(2007) 780 final

Communication from the Commission: A Common Immigration Policy for Europe — Principles, actions
and tools

COM(2008) 359 final

POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS

THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS

The role of local and regional authorities

1.
supports a common immigration policy, which has been
in the process of development since the European Council
meeting in Tampere in 1999, and culminating in the European
Pact on Immigration and Asylum;

2.
points out that the Committee of the Regions is prepared
to collaborate in drawing up a future common immigration
policy and to contribute to that policy; notes that local and
regional authorities are ready to face the new challenges and to
promote the exchange of approaches that have proved effective
in this area at local and regional level;

is satisfied with and appreciates the increased cooperation

3.
with the European Commission, which should be continued;

4.
welcomes the partnership-based approach adopted by the
European Commission. Cooperation and solidarity between the
Member States and EU institutions should also allow for invol-
vement of local and regional players. The future challenges call
for coordinated and coherent measures, which require effective
action by the EU and the Member States as part of a common
immigration policy;

emphasises that local and regional authorities are first to
5.
be significantly affected by a common immigration policy. On
the one hand, they are particularly affected by the difficulties of
illegal immigration, while, on the other, they are responsible for
providing immigrants with a range of services as part of the
local
integration process. For this reason they must be fully
involved in the development of a European framework for legal
immigration, in measures to combat illegal immigration and in
development cooperation with countries of origin;

6.
like the Commission, sees the need for mechanisms based
on solidarity between the Member States and the EU in burden-
sharing and policy coordination. The local and regional authori-
ties draw attention to the financing of tasks such as monitoring
and control of borders as well as integration policy, which has
an impact on public finances at national, regional and local
levels;

7.
considers respect for human rights, the principles of the
rule of law, and the promotion of democracy to be key aspects
of any immigration policy. The European Union guarantees the
freedoms and principles enshrined in the Charter of Funda-
mental Rights, including human dignity, freedoms, equality, soli-
darity, citizens' rights and legal rights. The rights of women and
children are particularly important here. Traditions or practices
that violate these principles cannot be tolerated. The shared
European values from which the Charter of Fundamental Rights
springs are not negotiable. Everyone in the European Union
must accept European basic rights as a binding code of values;

points out that migrants already constitute an important
8.
and integral part of society in many European municipalities
and regions. The European Union is a society with a truly rich
and diverse cultural heritage, which must be preserved and
developed. UNESCO defines culture as a complex that embraces
not just art and literature, but also ways of life, basic human
rights, value systems, traditions and beliefs. Immigration can
help to enhance cultural diversity. The European Union has paid
particular tribute to cultural diversity by making 2008 the
European Year of Intercultural Dialogue (1);

Steps towards a common immigration policy

9.
the
in the light of previously adopted Committee of
Regions opinions, calls for local and regional players to be
involved in the next stages of a common immigration policy for
the future (2);

Prosperity and immigration

points to the great importance of migrants in the light of
10.
their contribution to the socio-economic development of the
EU. To ensure the international competitiveness of the European
economic area, the attractiveness of the EU must be perceptibly
local and regional
improved, so that greater use is made of
capacity;

considers clear and transparent rules — and compliance
legal

11.
with them — to be urgently needed for reasons of
certainty and the fair treatment of third-country nationals;

(1) Regulation (EC) No 1983/2006 of the European Parliament and the
Council of 18 December 2006 on the European Year of Intercultural
Dialogue (2008).

(2) Since the Communication COM(2008) 359 final concerns only issues
relating to immigration of third-country nationals, this opinion does
not consider migration of EU citizens within the EU or within certain
regions.

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Official Journal of the European Union

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for

sees systems to encourage integration, with attractive
12.
residence conditions
third-country nationals and their
families, as an important way of acquiring the needed labour for
the European economic area. Effective programmes for mana-
ging migration in a way that is appropriate to the labour market
should also take issues of family reunification as defined in
Directive 2003/86/EC into account;

13.
observes that by simplifying administrative procedures, a
common immigration policy could lead to a substantial reduc-
tion in red tape, both for the Member States and for regional
and local authorities;

considers it important for the Commission to evaluate
14.
what will be required of regional and local authorities as a result
of the measures which it is proposing should be taken at EU or
national level. It is also important that the tasks that may be
required of local and regional authorities should be financed at
national level or through EU funding;

19.
considers active cooperation between all parts of civil
society and a positive attitude on the part of immigrants and of
host societies to be important prerequisites for integration.
Countries of origin can make a contribution to the integration
of their nationals in European host countries;

recognises the crucial importance of mastering the offi-
20.
cial language or languages of the host country. Successful inte-
gration at local and regional level is facilitated by early acquisi-
tion of the language(s). Immigrants and most especially their
children should be strongly encouraged to learn the official
language(s) of the host country, while their right to have a
perfect command of
tongue should also be
respected and supported;

their mother

21.
considers the provision of basic, understandable informa-
tion on the city, area or district of destination and the most
common lifestyles in these places, to be a priority;

notes that

the Member States have different

15.
labour
market needs. Consideration must therefore be given to the
varying requirements of national, regional and local
labour
markets, maintaining the autonomy of the Member States and
respect
for the subsidiarity principle when introducing any
EU-wide standards, procedural rules and residence permits such
as the planned EU Blue Card. The Member States' competence
for stipulating how many third-country nationals may enter
their territory to seek work there as employees or self-employed
workers provides a way of taking labour market needs into
account;

16.
in this context welcomes the Commission's proposal that
local and regional authorities be actively involved in improving
the balance between skills and sectoral needs, and it is here that
particular local and regional characteristics can be taken into
consideration;

Integration as the key to effective immigration

notes the importance of

17.
local and regional authorities
playing an active role in the integration of immigrants. The
specific needs of municipalities and regions must be taken into
account in the future common immigration policy and in the
accompanying measures, for instance operation of the European
Integration Fund, without prejudice to the principles of subsi-
diarity and proportionality;

18.
links the exercise of basic rights to responsibility and
duties towards other people, society and future generations.
Honouring the European value consensus is an obligation to
show respect and tolerance, a prerequisite for peaceful and
democratic co-existence.
Intercultural dialogue can play an
important role in encouraging this;

the

emphasises

22.
importance of possessing a basic
familiarity with the history and institutions of the host society.
Enabling immigrants to acquire this basic knowledge is crucial
to successful integration;

23.
advocates holding reception programmes and activities
for recently arrived third-country nationals, so that they can
acquire a basic knowledge of the language, history, institutions,
socio-economic features, cultural life and key values of the host
society;

24.
it supports funding for innovative programmes or inte-
gration models that include language learning and communica-
tion workshops, together with information on cultural, political
and social aspects of the host society;

25.
believes that education plays a key role in integration.
Local and regional authorities have important tasks in relation
to education in terms of promoting equality of opportunities for
everyone. The Green Paper published by the Commission on
Migration & mobility: challenges and opportunities for EU education
systems (3) sets out this key role played by education in relation
to integration. The Commission should thereby take particular
account of
remits when evaluating
consultation;

and regional

local

notes the important role of work in the integration of
26.
migrants. Unemployment is often an obstacle to successful inte-
gration, especially where it affects young people. Immigration of
third-country nationals must take place in line with the labour
market requirements of the different Member States. It is crucial
for integration that migrants have their own gainful employ-
ment, especially since this ensures that they are covered by
social security systems. Without this, migrant access to social
security systems would place a particular burden on regional
and local authorities and could not be explained to the public in
the Member States;

(3) COM(2008) 423 final.

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Solidarity and immigration

27.
stresses that there is a relationship between illegal and
legal immigration and that combating illegal immigration is of
key importance for framing a policy on legal migration. On the
one hand, the fight against illegal immigration must be consis-
tent and comprehensive, so as to effectively combat often orga-
nised criminal structures; therefore,
it is important for agree-
ments with third countries to incorporate provisions with
regard to the fight against illegal migration including, in particu-
lar, the readmission of illegally residing third-country nationals.
On the other hand, steps must be taken to facilitate legal migra-
tion where there are labour shortages,
in the case of highly
skilled labour, or where the main purpose is the exchange and
transfer of knowledge or further training of migrants during a
limited stay — something that is also conducive to the subse-
quent development of the countries of origin;

Efficient and coherent use of available resources

28.
calls for comprehensive information to be provided
about the relevant EU funds and assistance programmes so that
all
local and regional stakeholders can make use of existing
funds and programmes;

29.
believes that under the future EU immigration policy it
may be necessary to extend the capacity of FRONTEX in the
field of border control and prevention of threats to security, by
allocating financial and human resources to enable this agency
to perform its task effectively;

30.
explicitly notes that under the future EU immigration
policy, account is taken of the need to boost the capacity of
local and regional authorities to manage migration flows, in par-
ticular by allocating appropriate financial resources and ensuring
access to EU funding and programmes. Failure to establish a
sustainable and effective immigration policy — i.e. one that is
accepted by all stakeholders — would have high socio-economic
costs and would jeopardise our welfare, social harmony and
economic development;

31.
calls for financial support for integration policy and espe-
cially educational tasks at local and regional level. The Green
Paper on immigration and mobility will address the issue of the
contribution made by Community programmes and funds to
supporting integration policy. Local and regional
integration-
specific tasks in the sphere of education must be backed up by
the European Integration Fund;

Partnership with third countries

32.
points out that under the future EU immigration policy
the key importance of promoting dialogue and cooperating

Brussels, 26 November 2008.

with countries of origin and transit countries must be borne in
mind, using instruments of European neighbourhood policy, the
Union for the Mediterranean and implementing effective devel-
opment cooperation. Local and regional authorities play an
important role in promoting such cooperation. This is particu-
larly the case with authorities that can serve as cooperation plat-
forms for joint efforts with neighbouring third countries;

draws attention to the global dimension of migration,
33.
which has far-reaching consequences for countries of origin and
for the European Union. For this reason, particular account
must be taken of the way the issues of migration and develop-
the
ment are interlinked.
It should be borne in mind that
emigration of
skilled workers must not have a negative
economic impact (‘brain drain’) on developing countries. In the
case of circular migration, workers could use or pass on the
skills they have acquired once they return to their country of
origin;

Security and immigration

believes that, given the challenges associated with illegal
34.
immigration, when framing future EU immigration policy the
focus must be on the need for practicable, coordinated measures
to combat people trafficking and criminal organisations, so as
to prevent human tragedies;

Stepping up the campaign against
tolerance of human trafficking

illegal

immigration and zero

urgently backs European Union measures to prevent
35.
illegal immigration, which often encourages exploitation, espe-
cially of women and children. Consistent measures must be
taken here. The networks of people smugglers and the groups
that organise or participate in human trafficking must be
combated in cooperation with the countries of origin and
transit countries. Local and regional authorities must be
involved in cooperation measures as appropriate;

Outlook

recognises the opportunities inherent

36.
in an effective
immigration policy which can contribute to economic growth
and cultural diversity. Local and regional authorities support
such a policy, which contributes to enhancing the economic and
social potential of the European Union; at the same time reiter-
ates that the European Union can fully enjoy the benefits of
legal migration if the fight against illegal immigration is compre-
hensive and successful.

The President

of the Committee of the Regions

Luc VAN DEN BRANDE