News from the Socialist Group in the European Parliament

Enda McKay - Mobile: 00 32 (0)476 809 092

<mailto:emckay@europarl.eu.int>emckay@europarl.eu.int

24 February 2006

ASYLUM DIRECTIVE: SOCIALISTS WELCOME COURT'S INVOLVEMENT

Socialist MEPs have welcomed yesterday's decision by the European Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee to refer the Asylum Procedures directive to the European Court. Wolfgang Kreissl-D˚rfler, Parliament's rapporteur on asylum procedures, said: "Now the Court will have to decide whether the serious doubts of the Parliament can be ignored. The Home Affairs Council never took our views on this directive seriously. That was a clear mistake - the rights of refugees must be respected."

In December the Council adopted the directive without implementing any of the 174 amendments Parliament had suggested in September. Martine Roure, socialist coordinator on the committee on civil liberties, said: "Though the council is only obliged to consult us, it should not ignore our opinion. We are the legitimate representatives of Europe's citizens, and European governments should acknowledge this."

Maria Berger, socialist coordinator on the committee for legal affairs, explained: "We believe that we have the right to set up the list of safe countries of origin in the framework of the co-decision procedure. Parliament is insisting on that. We are not going to give our rights away so easily."

The concept of 'safe countries of origin' is aimed at accelerating procedures for asylum seekers who come from designated 'safe countries' and are therefore presumed not to be liable to persecution. This could have serious consequences for individual asylum seekers and for so-called 'safe third countries'.

The Socialist MEPs stressed that Parliament would adopt a constructive role in the development of a common European asylum system: "By 2010 we  want to have a working common asylum system, guaranteeing high human rights standards and respecting international refugee rights."