It is a pleasure to be here in the Parliament in Dublin, Ireland, and to have the possibility to speak with members and to listen to their views. Of course, I would like to answer all their questions. There is a lot we can say about migration but I would like to update members on where we are on the path that I presented one and a half years ago and some of the challenges we are facing right now.
The previous Commissioner presented proposals for migration and asylum policy. That was blocked and it was not possible to move forward. With the new pact, we have new momentum. Member states are being constructive. They are seeing it positively. Most member states see that this is a balanced proposal. It is possible to make progress here but it still has to be done. Every day that we do not have a European agreement on migration and asylum makes us vulnerable. It destroys trust between member states. You could see this was something that Lukashenko tried to use when he said he tried to sell tickets to the European Union, but, of course, it is not for him to sell. However, he used human beings in a dangerous way.
It is important that we find an agreement and show that we can compromise on migration. It is not the only issue where the member states of the European Union have some diverging experience and views. If we treat it in a sober way, however, we may be able to find the right compromise. Without a compromise on migration and asylum, and a common policy, it is clear that those who will suffer are migrants and refugees. This is important.
I applaud Ireland for showing solidarity. Ireland is an important ally in upholding fundamental rights, humanitarian values and European values. This is important in these times we are living in.
One reason I wanted this portfolio is that it scares me when I hear political leaders or others talking about migrants as if they were not human beings. Talking about people and migration is nothing to be afraid of. Migration is something to manage, and sometimes there are challenges. Sometimes these challenges are big but, of course, they are manageable. They are nothing to scare each other with.
I have learned about Ireland's recent initiative to regularise undocumented migrants here. The committee does not know, I guess, how many that will be, but I understand it could be up to 17,000 people. This is the right step to take. We have seen it also in other member states, but I think this is a bold step. I applaud this initiative because it is a really good one.
Ireland also usually takes part in resettlement on a high level. It took part in relocation, helping vulnerable children from the Greek islands, and the search and rescue of victims from Malta and Italy. This is really great.
Another part of my pact is that I proposed to set up community sponsored resettlement schemes. That is inspired by Ireland because you already have this. This is a good way of welcoming people into local communities. This has been one of the inspirations for the proposal I have put forward in the pact.
Of course, I do not need to tell the Irish Parliament that migration is normal. It is worth repeating, however, that migration is normal. To give the committee some figures, in a normal year in the European Union, 3 million people will get residence permits. Most of them come because they are falling in love with a European citizen, to work here, do research or, of course, study. Some of them also come for international protection, but that is a smaller part. Each year, approximately 1 million or 1.5 million European citizens move to a third country, mostly because they have fallen in love with a person from such a country or to work there, study or research. This is normal, but every year the European Union is growing by 1 million people or 1.5 million people. We need that. Ours is an ageing society and we need migration.
The most part of the migration, I should say, is managed quite well by us already.
However, we do not manage the irregular arrivals well enough. We need fewer irregular arrivals and they must be better registered and have access to a fair asylum process. We also need to invest more in legal pathways both for those who come here for economic reasons, that is, to work here and also for refugees on resettlement. We have made some significant progress already. The blue card was adopted last year. It had been blocked since 2015. The new EU asylum agency was also adopted last year. Its functions began two weeks ago. That was also a file that had been blocked for many years. We have started to use the so-called "blueprint" proposal that is already ongoing when it comes to Belarus and Afghanistan, for example.
The French Presidency has really put a new momentum into negotiations on the pact. Last week we had an informal Council in Lille attended by President Macron. That was a really strong signal from the French Presidency that it would really like to move forward now. President Macron had a very inspiring speech on migration. It really showed this pragmatic approach to how we can manage migration together. The French Presidency is now putting on the table three perspectives on the pact.
The first is the external dimension. I think everybody realises it is not possible to manage migration in the EU without working with third countries, be they countries of origin or countries of transit. This was very clear when we saw the situation and the attacks from Lukashenko towards the European Union where he used human beings. Only looking at how to protect our external borders will not work. The moment we started to have some progress was when we managed to reach out to the international community, third countries and airline companies to stop the inflow of people and stop people being tricked and lured into this dangerous situation. Iraq, for example, stepped up. It has voluntarily evacuated more than 5,000 people from Belarus. That was the moment when we managed a de-escalation. I do not need to tell the committee that building walls and barbed-wire fences is not the way to manage migration. It is not the way forward for the EU. Our destiny lies together with other countries, including countries of origin and transit. This is really important. That is why I put a lot of emphasis on that in my work. I can tell members more on that. I am going directly from here to Senegal and Niger because these are important countries of both origin and transit, such as for the smuggling that goes through Libya, for example, and so it is important to work together with them.
The second part is to ensure people are being properly registered at the border if they arrive irregularly. This is not working well today. Last year, around 25% of those arriving irregularly were not registered at all. That is a huge risk. We can, for example, see children go missing and we do not really know. Sometimes there are unaccompanied minors. If they are not registered they will not have a guardian. They will not be properly protected. It is the same for other vulnerable groups. It is really important people are registered. It is also important we have the screening to see what kind of people are coming. Do they have some specific needs? We also need to ensure we can have a swift process for those not in need of international protection. The return rate is, I should say, quite low. We could really step up the return of those not eligible to stay but the longer you have stayed in a country the more difficult that is because then you have part of society and it is really difficult to return. That is why it is important to have a swift process and you also need the screening for that reason and to make sure people have access to the asylum process. That are some voices now in the Council saying people arriving irregularly should not have access to the asylum process. I would be very much against that approach. We must stand up for fundamental rights and defend the Geneva Convention.
The Geneva Convention turned 70 last year. Of course the EU should uphold its values and practice.
Finally, there is solidarity. For the most part those who arrive irregularly come to certain member states. Therefore we need solidarity so that when there are many arrivals the other member states need to step up. I have proposed a mandatory solidarity mechanism and now the French Presidency is developing this. It is saying that member states should help other member states which are under pressure both with relocation and also helping with returns. Cyprus, for example, is in this situation. Belgium has helped Cyprus return people to Congo for example. They should also help by financial means to prevent people from going on these dangerous journeys across the Mediterranean or the Atlantic routes. They could, for example, invest in opportunities in Tunisia but also in better equipment for border protection in countries like that.
I am happy to answer any questions. There are two different kinds of narrative on migration. It is important to stress the narrative that migration is normal, has always been there and will always be there. Of course it can be a challenge but we can manage that. However, it is nothing to be afraid of. Do not panic; stay sober. We can manage this especially if we work together and if we work with third countries and of course we should not be afraid of migrants. We have to remember that migrants are people like all of us who have the same kinds of feelings. Even if they do not always have the right to stay in the EU they are still human beings and human beings have to be treated according to their rights and dignity.