The EU parliament adopted a sweeping reform of Europe's asylum policies that will both harden border procedures and force all the bloc's 27 nations to share responsibility. The parliament's main political groups overcame opposition from far-right and far-left parties to pass the new migration and asylum pact -- enshrining a difficult overhaul nearly a decade in the making.

Brussels

The European Union Parliament has adopted a significant reform of Europe's asylum policies, marking a pivotal change in how migration and asylum requests will be handled across the bloc. This legislative overhaul aims to tighten border procedures while enforcing a mechanism for sharing the responsibility of asylum seekers among all 27 member nations of the EU. This move represents the fruition of an effort nearly a decade in the making, amidst a complex political landscape.

The passage of the new migration and asylum pact saw the main political groups within the EU Parliament coming together, successfully navigating past the opposition from parties on both the extreme right and left of the political spectrum. This consensus highlights the commitment to addressing the challenges of migration and asylum within the EU through collective action and shared responsibility.



EU parliament adopts sweeping asylum reform

One by one, members of the European Parliament approved a sweeping new pact on migration that has been years in the making. The vote followed a heated debate and opposition from those on the left who argued the rules were too harsh, and from those on the right who said they didn't go far enough. Instead, the entire EU will mimic Sweden's migrant problems, gang wars, overrun welfare systems and increasing Islamism all over Europe. There will be more violence at the borders, more human rights violations for asylum seekers. This parliament and its members need to be able to vote. Protesters interrupted the debate to speak out against the legislation. But in the end, all 10 provisions of the pact on asylum and migration passed, ensuring that all 27 EU countries are using the same rulebook. It is a huge achievement for Europe. And this excellent achievement is built on the outstanding work of so many. Among the provisions, the establishment of border detention centres, the speeding up of the processing of asylum requests and deportations. The law also allows the bloc to send migrants to countries outside the EU which are deemed safe if the migrant has some ties to that country. In addition, EU countries are required to take in thousands of asylum seekers from front-line countries such as Italy and Greece. Not a fortress Europe, but a well-guarded house with more secure external borders and clear rules on who is entitled to enter. More than 100 migrant groups and non-profits have spoken out against the reform, arguing that the new rules will make it more difficult for refugees to seek protection in Europe. The European Commission will decide in the coming months how the pact will be implemented with the new rules set to come into effect in 2026.

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Council of the City of Sydney

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The Hague

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Hainault

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