The always divisive debate on migration is growing strongly in Europe turned towards harsh rhetoric aimed at controlling borders. The discussion between European leaders becomes complex: the distance between those who support the financing of containment centers and others who openly ask that walls be erected deepens.
The expectation for the disclosure of immigration figures in the United Kingdom exemplifies this tension. Indeed, the perspective has been confirmed from the publication of the National Statistics Office which has pointed out that net immigration reached a record level of 606,000 people in 2022.
This data arises from the balance of immigration, which reached 1.2 million in 2022, and emigration, at 557,000. Most of the entries are from citizens from outside the European Union (925,000), compared to 151,000 arrivals from the bloc and 88,000 from the British.
In Francethe latest survey from the consultancy Odoxa Backbone made for le figaro It stands out that among the French, 79% support the obligation of asylum seekers to formulate their request before being in French territory. In addition, 74% want the immigrant quotas to be set each year by Parliament. Still others are in favor of the possibility of submitting the personal income policy to a referendum, with 72 percent.
In the British case, the end of free movement with the EU brought about an opening of the visa system for non-EU countries, which ended up causing an increase in immigration.
The current prime minister Rishi Sunak he pledged to reduce immigration from the legacy level of about 500,000. To do this, the government he heads is trying to draft an Irregular Immigration Bill that would allow the detention and rapid deportation of anyone who enters the United Kingdom illegally. However, bidding to reach a common standard slows progress.
In most cases, it is the parties of the right and ultra-right that push for a less permeable administration of the borders. In the case of France, the support is found on the side of the sympathizers of the “traditional” right of Los Republicanos, but also of the National Group that leads Marine LePen.
The latest bill of the LR is also consistent with the judgment of citizens, increasingly strict on immigration. 74%, according to the same survey that publishes le Figaro, believe that there are too many immigrants in France -11 points more in five years- and only 55% believe that the country should welcome refugees seeking asylum because they are persecuted in their country (-10 points).
The question in Spain It has skyrocketed in recent days in relation to recent events on a soccer field. The striker of Real Madrid, Vinicius Junior, who has been the subject of racist chants, took to social media after the latest attack, when Valencia fans called him a “monkey”. This time, he spoke of the entire country, describing Spain as a “racist” nation.
The dilemma raises the idea that, while Europeans show themselves to be ‘concerned’ by international conflict, at the same time they reject the presence of foreigners in their cities because they associate them with the deterioration of their quality of life.
To level Brussels This 2023 began with a never-before-seen tightening of border policies. Migrant arrivals have increased to levels not seen since 2016, especially on the Balkan route, and this has once again put pressure on the countries of central Europe.
Member States accepted very tough positions on migration. Specifically, they supported the financing of containment infrastructures with European money before the arrival of migrants. However, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has repeatedly rejected the use of European funds to build walls or barriers.
A fight completes this picture. The President of the Council of Ministers of Italy, Giorgia Meloniand the President of the Republic of France, Emmanuel Macron, discussed ways to correct the continent’s “migratory problems”. Meloni has a refractory position on the reception of shipwrecked migrants, an issue that caused bilateral tensions with the blockade of hundreds of arrivals in 2022.
The French government, at that time, denounced the “unacceptable behavior” of the Italian authorities, judging it “contrary to the law of the sea and the spirit of European solidarity.”
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Source-www.infobae.com