In September 2015, EU member states committed to relocating 160,000 asylum-seekers in Greece and Italy within two years. However with the deadline looming, just 18,418 have been moved to new homes elsewhere in the European Union.

Today MEPs voted in favour of a new resolution that accuses EU member states of dragging their feet on this legislation [1].

Jean Lambert, London’s Green MEP and the Greens’ spokesperson on migration, said:

“I welcome today’s resolution, initiated by Greens in the European Parliament, which strongly denounces the failure of many Member States to relocate refugees.

Since September 2015, EU Member States have only managed to relocate 11.5% of the asylum-seekers promised. This failure has left thousands of refugees languishing in refugee camps at Europe’s borders – often stranded in over-crowded, unsafe and unsanitary conditions without access to legal advice. Their lives are in limbo.

It’s shameful that the UK has opted out of this agreement. In my country’s absence, it’s even more important that all other Member States step up their number of relocations.

I welcome the Commission’s decision to launch infringement procedures against states that fail to stick to their obligations. However, this is only the tip of the iceberg – so much more work needs to be done.

As long as war and persecution continue, refugees will not disappear. With the summer months approaching, we can expect the number of new arrivals in Italy and Greece to pick up, putting yet more strain on their national infrastructures. They cannot deal with this alone. If we hope to tackle this humanitarian crisis effectively we must use every tool at our disposal, including an updated Dublin Regulation and the introduction of more safe and legal migration channels.”

[1] http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-room/20170515STO74806/eu-refugee-crisis-%E2%80%9Crelocation-is-our-shared-moral-duty%E2%80%9D

ENDS

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The European Union has launched legal action against Hungary over a law that would effectively shut down Budapest-based Central European University (CEU), founded by philanthropist George Soros in 1991 [1].

Hungary’s new higher education law, instituted by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, introduces tough measures for foreign-registered universities. The legislation will put severe restrictions on CEU, including requirements to open a new branch in the USA, ensure all staff apply for a Hungarian work permit, and prevent it from teaching US-accredited courses [2].

Jean Lambert, London’s Green MEP and member of the European Parliament’s Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs committee, says:

“Over the past 25 years, the Central European University (CEU) has been a progressive force within Hungarian society. The institution has played an important role in the democratic transition of the country, and become a valuable resource for scholars and students across Eastern Europe. Academic freedom is an essential element of any healthy democracy – an indicator of a state’s commitment to civil liberties, human rights, and a plurality of opinions.

For this reason, the Hungarian Government’s recent crackdown on CEU is an assault on a number of the European Union’s fundamental values. These actions reflect a wider global trend towards nationalism and illiberalism, which too often stifle academic debate and independent scientific research.

It’s encouraging that the Commission has decided to open infringement proceedings against Hungary, giving Orbán one month to prove that his higher education law does not contravene EU standards. The Prime Minister’s collaboration with these demands is also a step in the right direction [3].

However, Orbán’s repressive policies do not stop at the world of academia. His increasingly autocratic government has come to threaten the essence of Hungarian democracy and rule of law, targeting the media and his country’s judicial system.

The Greens/EFA Group has called for the European Parliament to invoke Article 7 of the Treaty on the European Union, which enables the EU to sanction member states violating its basic principles such as dignity, freedom, democracy and respect for human rights [4].

At this time of increasing political populism, it’s crucial that the EU shows political and moral leadership. It must demonstrate that it takes any breach of these basic rights seriously to protect all citizens, and to stand up for Europe’s hard-fought democratic institutions”.

[1] http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEX-17-1116_en.htm

[2] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/apr/25/university-chief-appeals-for-eu-help-to-fight-hungarian-clampdown

[3] http://www.epp.eu/press-releases/prime-minister-orban-to-comply-with-eu-laws-and-epp-values-following-meeting-with-epp-presidency/

[4] https://www.greens-efa.eu/en/article/convervatives-must-not-block-action-against-hungary/

ENDS

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Commenting on the proposal, Green migration spokesperson Jean Lambert said:

“We are deeply concerned to see the Commission again prioritising keeping people in need of protection outside the EU’s borders. If the Commission really wants to save lives, they should focus on establishing legal and safe routes to the EU for those in need of protection and ensuring the humane treatment of asylum seekers in the EU.

 “These plans amount to an externalisation of the EU’s responsibilities to protect refugees to countries such as Libya and Niger, Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria. Even with the recent increase in arrivals, the EU still hosts only a tiny fraction of the world’s refugees. Proposals like this only serve to fuel the false narrative that Europe is being swamped with refugees, making it much harder to convince our citizens that the EU can play a meaningful role in addressing the current problems.”

Green migration spokesperson Judith Sargentini added:

“We already know that detained refugees and migrants in Libya have been subjected to torture, forced labour, and sexual violence, and other horrific human rights violations (2). Given what we know of the conditions in Libya, Europe cannot with good conscience pursue such a deal.

 “It is frustrating that another deal with a third country is being pursued without giving the European Parliament its right to democratic oversight, as was also the case with the deals with Turkey, Afghanistan and Mali.”

ENDS

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Notes

(1) http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-17-134_en.htm

(2) https://www.hrw.org/news/2016/12/14/libya-end-horrific-abuse-detained-migrants

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Green MEPs are today calling on UK Ministers to commit to maintaining vital EU wildlife protections as the European Commission announces its plans to beef up the enforcement of key EU-wide nature laws following a policy ‘fitness check’.

Green MEPs had resisted attempts to water down the Birds and Habitats Directives and, throughout the so-called ‘fitness check’ process, had, instead, urged the Commission to address enforcement problems.

Green MEPs are welcoming the news that the Commission has done just that and are now urging UK Ministers to recognise the importance of the laws for protecting precious British wildlife.

Jean Lambert, MEP for London, said:

“The UK stands at a crossroads. Will it follow Europe in pushing forwards with improving environmental legislation or embark on an environmentally destructive race to the bottom? As Greens, we are advocating for the former and calling on the Government to commit to maintaining and strengthening these vital EU environmental protections.”

Keith Taylor, MEP for the South East and a member of the European Parliament’s Environment committee, said:

“These vital laws are driving positive conservation action in Britain. Protected wildlife sites were being lost at a rate of 15% a year before EU action; now that rate has fallen to just 1% a year.

“Wildlife and environmental issues were sidelined during the referendum campaign, but we cannot allow leaving the EU to be an excuse to erode the vital safeguards Leave campaigners maligned as ‘red tape’.”

Molly Scott Cato, MEP for the South West and a member of the European Parliament’s Agriculture committee, said:

“We welcome the Commission’s commitment to strengthening the enforcement of the Nature Directives. This is something Greens have consistently called for.

 “As the EU seeks to strengthen its nature laws we need UK Ministers to commit to maintaining these vital protections in a post-Brexit Britain.

 “These are worrying times for the environment in the UK. We already see hard-line Brexiteers like Jacob Rees-Mogg calling for environmental and safety regulations to be slashed once the UK leaves the EU.”

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A new system of more shared responsibility for asylum applications among European Union countries has been put forward today by the European Commission.  The proposal reinforces the current failures in the system and will not give more certainty and hope to desperate people, according to Greens migration spokesperson, Jean Lambert MEP.

The European Commission has proposed to maintain the current system – known as the ‘Dublin Regulation’ – under which the country in which an asylum seeker first arrives is responsible for processing their asylum application. This system has reached breaking point in Greece and Italy where most people coming into Europe first arrive.

The United Kingdom will have the choice to opt-out of the proposed system.

Reacting to today’s proposals, Jean Lambert MEP, Greens migration spokesperson said:

“The current EU asylum system is broken and does not work either for EU member states or those caught up in the asylum process. A new system, based on solidarity and responsibility-sharing between member states is needed, but the Commission has reinforced the current failing rules.

“With no trust in the current system, there is a need to take much greater account of asylum seekers’ preferences and existing ties, otherwise asylum seekers will continue to take dangerous routes and use people smugglers.

“The UK and some other governments will fight for their right to return asylum seekers to other countries but in reality few people are sent back. The UK has a moral responsibility to do more, as the dramatic situations in Greece and Italy underline, and the government should put in place the funding local councils need to welcome families fleeing war and persecution, to help them to integrate and build new lives.

“The European Union is absolutely the right place for governments to work together to deal with urgent cross-border issues like migration. The European Parliament now has a major responsibility to transform this proposal into something that shows solidarity for asylum seekers and the Member States most affected.”

ENDS

Read ‘The Green Alternative to the Dublin System‘

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The UK’s Green MEPs have started a petition calling on the European Commission to immediately carry out a European Fraud Investigation into vehicle emissions testing. The MEPs want all vehicles investigated, both petrol and diesel, to find out the extent to which “defeat devices” are being used to cheat emission tests.

Nine out of ten diesel vehicles currently exceed permitted pollution levels with around 400,000 premature deaths in Europe attributable to air pollution.

In a statement on the launch of the petition, Green MEPs Jean Lambert, Molly Scott Cato and Keith Taylor said:

‘Given the appalling costs of air pollution in Europe both in terms of public health and financially the recent revelations that Volkswagen has cheated pollution tests for 11 million of its diesel vehicles adds insult to injury. This scandal shows unequivocally that there are car manufacturers that are committing fraud, with criminal intent, through the use of so-called “defeat devices”.

‘These manufacturers and some politicians are now trying to avoid a Europe-wide inquiry. As Green MEPs for the South West, South East of England and London, we call on the EU institutions not to give into industry lobbying, the result of which would be the protection of private interests at the expense of citizens’ health.

‘We refuse to accept that the people we represent continue to be poisoned in order to swell the profits of car manufacturers. We therefore call for full transparency and for the law to be upheld.’

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Measures to deal with the refugee situation, as agreed by heads of state at an informal EU summit on 23 September, will be debated with European Council President Donald Tusk and Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker today. The humanitarian situation of refugees within the EU and in neighbouring countries will also be addressed by MEPs in a separate debate.

At an informal summit on 23 September, EU leaders discussed ways to respond to the urgent needs of refugees in the region, including providing an additional €1 billion to help the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the World Food Programme, increasing EU funds to help Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey, and strengthening controls at the EU’s external borders.

Jean Lambert, London’s Green MEP, said ahead of the debate:

‘What we need to see today is the will and commitment to operationalise this: for example, hiring interpreters and working in partnership with civil society, because while funding is clearly needed it must be allocated effectively. It is truly shocking that almost every EU country has scaled back such support in the last year. The UK should be ambitious about the number of people we can accept and so far the Government has been wrong-footed every step of the way through this crisis, it’s time to get on the front foot and prepare to meet our humanitarian and legal obligations.’

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MEPs will give their views on the European Agenda on Migration presented by the Commission in a debate with Vice-President Frans Timmermans, Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos and the Council Presidency this morning in Strasbourg.

Ahead of the debate Jean Lambert, Molly Scott Cato and Keith Taylor, Green MEPs for London, the South West and the South East of England united in saying:

“The European Commission seems, at least, to have understood that EU Member States must together face up to their collective responsibility for refugees.

More opportunities for legal access to the territory of the EU and greater commitment on combating the underlying reasons why refugees flee their country of origin are needed. Along with this, a humane and compassionate response should frame the debate, not a competition to see who can talk toughest.

Seizing and sinking smugglers’ boats may have a short term effect, but it also risks more injuries and deaths. Rather than grab headlines, what is needed is a well-resourced, internationally co-ordinated effort to improve the quality of life in departure countries and put people smugglers out of business.”

ENDS

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The European Commission today presented a new package of measures on migration. The proposals do not go far enough, according to Jean Lambert, Greens MEP for London and Member of the Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs committee, who stated:

‘The European Commission seems, at least, to have understood that the EU Member States must together face up to their collective responsibility for refugees. The proposal for firm allocations for the distribution of asylum seekers is a first step. Nevertheless, on the whole, the Commission’s proposals are timid and don’t go far enough. The Commission must ensure that the Dublin rules do not block the right to asylum.

‘The progress made on allocations is overshadowed by the proposals to combat people smugglers by means of UN-backed military operations. These military operations are focused on deterrence but will in practice mean that desperate people seek out even more dangerous routes into the EU. We need more opportunities for legal access and greater commitment on combating the underlying reasons why refugees flee their country of origin.’

Jean Lambert concluded:

‘The Home Secretary gave interviews this morning but doesn’t appear to be in full possession of the facts, which is deeply worrying. Two of the biggest groups crossing Med are Syrians & Eritreans: almost all refugees. The crisis in the Mediterranean is a humanitarian issue, not a security problem.’

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A ten-point action plan has been revealed by the European Union in the wake of large-scale loss of life in The Mediterranean, promising to both increase control as well as rescue operations. The European Commission said the plan, approved by EU Foreign and Interior ministers at an emergency meeting in Luxembourg, will be presented at a summit today, Thursday the 23rd. Commenting, Jean Lambert, Green MEP for London said:

‘It could not be clearer that immediate action is needed to prevent further loss of life. We need an ongoing EU-funded programme for search and rescue of refugees because individual governments can no longer cry crocodile tears while at the same time refusing to support rescue missions. We must of course work to combat despicable smugglers, but acknowledge that desperate people take desperate measures. What worries me about this plan is the focus on smugglers and on return programmes. It looks as if we are just pandering to fears instead of really getting to the root of the problem.

‘No-one should be fooled, FRONTEX is border control, not a rescue operation. Unless Libya and Syria can experience prolonged stability people will continue to do what they have always done throughout history: try and reach safety. While the EU is not above criticism, it is our own Government that decides the level of support for the Italian Government.’

The European Parliament will have a co-decision role on any proposal to adapt the EU budget, and Greens call on all political groups to consider this in the ongoing negotiations on the 2016 EU budget and put pressure on the European Commission and EU governments.

Next week the plenary agenda of Parliament in Strasbourg will include a formal  Oral Question ( for which Jean was a co-signatory) with Council and Commission statements on the situation, Jean concluded:

‘We need a common European approach based on solidarity and humanity. The overwhelming majority of refugees are not in the EU: if Germany had the same proportion of refugees as Lebanon, there would be more than 20 million to support. The real crisis here is for those seeking sanctuary, not for the EU.’

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