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Written question asked by Lord Hylton (Crossbench) on Thursday, 16 October 2014, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 30 October 2014. It was answered by Lord Bates (Conservative) on Monday, 27 October 2014 on behalf of the Home Office.

EU Immigration

Question

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will make proposals for better sharing of the burdens now falling on Malta, Italy and Greece from the flow of refugees and migrants seeking to enter Europe.

Answer

The Government believes that the best way to help EU Member States who are experiencing high levels of illegal migration and asylum claims is through practical co-operation and support to build up their capacity so they can cope with the pressures on their system. We already provide such support and will continue to do so, both through the European Asylum Support Office and bilaterally. We are also working with EU partners to strengthen border security, improve cooperation with source and transit countries and tackle the organised criminal groups involved in people smuggling and human trafficking.

We do not agree that burden sharing in the sense of intra-EU relocation of asylum seekers or refugees as advocated by the countries referred to is the right solution: we believe that such measures would induce even more illegal migrants to risk their lives making the dangerous journey across the Mediterranean.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
HL2160
Session
2014-15
Subjects
Greece Malta EU immigration Italy
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk