Leftist conference calls for coordinated European action on migration

Budapest, November 18 (MTI) – A coordinated European action on migration is more effective than the member states taking steps alone, Jozsef Tobias, the leader of the Socialist opposition, told a conference on Wednesday.

“The EU has thus far failed the test of solidarity,” he told the event organised by the Foundation of European Progressive Studies (FEPS) and the Tancsics Foundation. Addressing the event entitled “The European Union at historical crossroads: Challenges and policy options” Tobias said the Dublin regulations seem to have become invalid and new temporary regulations were needed. This would include regulations on European external border protection including a mechanism for the joint registration and distribution of migrants, as well as an agreement on the expulsion of those who do not receive asylum. In addition, a community intelligence agency and joint European military force should be established, he said.

Zita Gurmai, the deputy president of FEPS, said that after the Paris attacks a whole new situation has emerged in Europe, which “questions everything we had believed in so far and if we are not careful will bring down everything we had fought for”. It is the responsibility and most important task of the Left to prevent the disappearance of solidarity, she added.

Source: http://mtva.hu/hu/hungary-matters