Over the next two years, 24 Syrians and Eritreans who arrived in Italy after 15 April 2015 will be relocated to other EU member states. The same thing will happen to another 16 immigrants currently in Greece. This is a proposal from the Commission in Brussels which will now have to pass to the European Council (in which a qualified majority is required), having heard the Parliament in Strasbourg.
The people involved have been recognized as having the right to enjoy international protection, but the United Kingdom and Ireland have the opportunity to participate only if they want to and have already made it known that they intend to opt out. Denmark, on the other hand, enjoys the right not to participate.
The distribution among the various Member States is calculated taking into account the size of the population (a criterion that accounts for 40%), the GDP (40%), the number of applicants for recognition of the right to asylum (10%) and the rate of unemployment (10%).
For the relocation procedure, the European budget will provide extra funding of 240 million euros (6 thousand euros for each person involved).
The EU Commission has also proposed an action plan to combat migrant trafficking which includes the formation of a list of suspicious vessels and the exchange of information with financial institutions, internet service providers and social media to trace and remove the online network through which trafficking is organised.
