Immigration and asylum: ‘The people of Malta expect more and deserve better’

The Common European Asylum System (CEAS) about to be agreed to by the European Union would do little to concretely help Malta's situation, according to Maltese MEP Roberta Metsola.

During a speech as part of a debate on asylum at the European Parliament plenary session in Strasbourg today, MEPs Metsola and David Casa said that while the package as a whole contains a number of long-awaited improvements, particularly as regards higher standards for the reception and treatment of asylum seekers; stricter rules on the training of the authorities that are in contact with asylum seekers and police access to the Eurodac fingerprint system, there are still a number of issues that need to be urgently addressed within the revised Dublin Regulation to address Malta's particular situation.

Speaking about the proposed changes to the EU's Dublin Regulation, Metsola said high standards were necessary and respect for human rights and human dignity was essential but action must be taken on solidarity. "We need to take action now to make effective solidarity a European reality. The people of Malta and Gozo, expect more. They deserve better," she said. 

She added that the re-cast of the Dublin Regulation is one where the spirit of solidarity and sharing of responsibility was ignored.

"As a representative of the Maltese people, I cannot allow this package to go through without emphasising again in the strongest possible terms that the immigration pressures Malta faces persist and remain acute," Metsola said.

She continued to say more work was needed to address the disproportionate pressure faced by Malta, and that "the re-cast of the Dublin Regulation as proposed by the Commission did not even touch upon the criterion that imposes the requirement that asylum-seekers arriving to a Member State must remain the responsibility of that Member State."

She lamented that countries at the periphery of Europe like Malta are left to bear the brunt alone.

"From the very beginning of our mandate at the European Parliament, PN MEPs have been vociferous in their lack of satisfaction with Dublin II; the current re-cast remains highly inadequate," said Casa.