SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, July 30 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The vice president of the European Parliament, Marc Angel, has rejected that border territories such as the Canary Islands are condemned to be a retaining wall against immigration and has made it clear that the position of the European Parliament is against turning regions such as the archipelago into a prison for immigrants, ensuring that the new Pact on Migration and Asylum will bring long-term solutions and provide solidarity measures.
In an interview with Europa Press, the vice president of the European Parliament has stated that the proposal for a new Pact on Migration and Asylum is already on the table. “The European Parliament has already made an approach in a general way, which includes a comprehensive response to the migration crisis. The European Parliament fought for an agreement based on solidarity both in the search for protection and between Member States; one of the rights that protects is asylum and ensures that all Member States take their share of responsibility, meaning post-rescue relocation and rescue operations,” he said.
Marc Angel stressed that the current position of the European Parliament is inspired by human dignity, long-term solutions and strengthening solidarity measures, adding that the new pact establishes improved criteria to determine the responsibility of the Member States in the process of asylum applications (known as the Dublin Criterion) and a fair division of responsibilities.
Similarly, he stressed that it includes the strength of a solidarity mechanism to help countries that are experiencing migratory pressure, including after search and rescue operations at sea. “We hope that the Council, that is to say the Member States, will have a positive reaction that would give us the opportunity to adopt a legal text at the end of this term,” Angel stressed.
In this regard, the vice president does not agree that border territories such as the Canary Islands are condemned to be a retaining wall or a prison for immigrants: “The Migration Pact is about solutions, while talking about building walls is a distraction. The position of the European Parliament it is the opposite of turning regions like the Canary Islands into a jail for immigrants. This pact is very important legislation that will bring long-term solutions and provide solidarity measures.”
Likewise, Marc Angel points out that Europe has taken a step forward, in addition to proposing a review of the directive for long-term residents. He specified that this will include an acceleration of the granting of long-term permits in the EU after three years of legal residence and the possibility of integrating other people enjoying temporary protection status. Long-term residents in the EU will be able to move to another country of the Union without having additional limitations for work and the minors/children who depend on them will have the same status automatically.
SUPPORT TO THE CANDIDACY OF THE CANARY ISLANDS.
In another order of things, the vice-president of the European Parliament has supported the candidacy of the Canary Islands to be the headquarters of the European Tourism Agency: “Of course I am in favor of the candidacy of the Canary Islands, one of the outermost regions of the Union that has the opportunity to become the headquarters of the European Tourism Agency. This will give the EU an opportunity to get closer to the citizens who are on the outer edges of the European Union.”
Marc Angel made it clear that Europe “is not just about Brussels, Luxembourg and Strasbourg, but about all European cities. Much more than that, we need to build bridges between the central system of European Administration and its citizens. In addition, the presence of an agency in an outermost region is the perfect tool to build those bridges. This is the reason why I fully support the candidacy of the Canary Islands, especially since Tenerife has become a leader in sustainable tourism,” he asserted.
