Meeting of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice an Home Affairs on the Common EU list of safe countries of origin, in the EP in Brussels.&nbsp;Statements by Sylvie GUILLAUME (S&amp;D, FR), rapporteur, Michał BONI (EPP, PL), Jussi HALLA-AHO (ECR, FI), G&eacute;rard DEPREZ (ALDE, BE), and Martina ANDERSON (GUE/NGL, UK)

Brussels

meeting

Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

migration and refugees in Europe (T)

ANDERSON, Martina (GUE/NGL, UK)

BONI, Michał (EPP, PL)

GUILLAUME, Sylvie (S&D, FR)

DEPREZ, Gérard (ALDE, BE)

HALLA-AHO, Jussi (ECR, FI)

Common EU list of safe countries of origin: extracts from the report by Sylvie GUILLAUME (S&D, FR)

SOUNDBITE (French), Sylvie GUILLAUME (S&amp;D, FR), rapporteur, The adoption of an European list of safe origin countries will not necessarily mean that will immediately bring a total harmonisation, because its co-existing with national lists which are still available. Concerning the methodology for selecting the safe origin countries. There is not really a methodology suggested in the proposal for the moment and there is not yet a detailed evaluation of the 7 countries concerned by the countries which is to justify their inscription on the common list.

SOUNDBITE (French), Sylvie GUILLAUME (S&amp;D, FR), rapporteur, We have foreseen the creation of a consultative committee to inform on the countries of safe origin, including notably permanent members, among which we will find the support office and the UNHCR, but also non-permanent members selected on the bases of their expertise , so recognised by the countries concerned, and on the human rights.

SOUNDBITE (French), Sylvie GUILLAUME (S&amp;D, FR), rapporteur,, We wish to insure a more rapid and flexible revision mechanism of the list. We must be flexible in the process of revision of the list because there can arise sudden change of the situation on the safety of an origin country. We have to avoid too longs delay and the misplacement of a country on the list of safe countries.

SOUNDBITE (English), Micha&#322; BONI (EPP, PL), Even if this proposal won't solve by itself the migration crises Europe is facing, we need to give the European Union more and better tools to deal within the increasing amount of asylum seekers. As explained by the rapporteur we are going to negotiate on a partial mandate for this moment. This means we will leave for later the most sensitive topic which is the list of safe countries of origin, on this partial mandate defining the regulation of this list and I am really confident that we can find some good compromises between our political groups.

SOUNDBITE (English), Jussi HALLA-AHO (ECR, FI), The low number of persons who currently have being return from the European Union is not sustainable and it is affecting the EU's ability to offer humanitarian assistance to those individual most in need. If we are to deal with the crises we face and decrease the pressures on certain Member States then we must adopt measures that have to reduce bureaucracy and not increase it.

SOUNDBITE (French), G&#233;rard DEPREZ (ALDE, BE), In the Commission communication of 6 April 2016 'Towards a reform of a common asylum system, and an amelioration of the legal ways to enter Europe', it is foreseen the reinforcement of the mandate of the EASO (European Asylum Support office) , so to make a true actor of the putting in to practice the common asylum system. Personally I consider that if we have to set up an asylum procedure, the interlocutor has to be EASO. We have created the EASO for that. It is the EASO that before giving their report to the Commission to consult with actors on the field as the ONG, the UNHCR. So the main interlocutor for the Commission in that matter must be one of the Agencies that have been created especially for that.

SOUNDBITE (English), Martina ANDERSON (GUE/NGL, UK), Based on, of course, international law and on the EU law, based on the asylum procedures directive which considers a country to be safe when there is a democratic system and generally and consistent, there is no prosecution, there is no torture and there is no arm conflict and therefore when we look at what have been proposed in Turkey being on the list designated as a safe country, surely every impartial observer will say that Turkey does not fulfil that criteria.

SOUNDBITE (French), Sylvie GUILLAUME (S&amp;D, FR), Indeed there is a hard job to be done, to avoid - and it is not hypocrisy or naivety - to avoid that this concept will be only a tool one. Because I think it's deserve better than that. Better than simply a flux controlling coming from this or that country. I know that can be used for that, and that frequently it will be used for that. But our work has not to simply stop at the actual list, but also to make solid foundations so this concept can be fairly used in the case when - effectively it's might happen - this list becomes longer later, in the future. So these are the issues for which we have to work together.