Immigration: here to stay
Jose M. de Areilza
May 15, 2006
Romano Prodi, back in the job of Italian Prime Minister, has one very clear idea about the future of the EU: it should have a full-fledged immigration policy.
Of course, he admits 2006 is not the ideal political moment to ask for a huge transfer of new powers to Brussels. The EU faces mounting euro-skepticism and has scarce budgetary means. Yet Il Professore is pointing to the right direction: immigration into Europe is a new phenomenon of multiple faces and most likely to stay with us for the next hundred of years. Once there is free movement of persons inside the Union, it can only be managed effectively with strong participation of the European governmental level. Also, at a symbolic level, one can argue that immigration seriously affects the European ethos, i.e., the ethical treatment of the Other.
From a functional point of view, the first challenge of immigration policy is defining what is inside this label -or rather, what remains outside its scope. A sound immigration policy requires harmonization or coordination of subject matters like education, culture, labor law, social rights, justice, home affairs, diplomacy, development cooperation, common commercial policy, agriculture and quite a few identity issues (human rights, citizenship…). Many of this policy areas are likely to remain in the hands of Member States and, in some cases, under the competence of some political regions in the next years. This scattered distribution of powers means that there will be a high cost of coordination and a higher one of political accountability in the launching of an EU immigration policy.
From an identity perspective, this new area of EU legislation demands a profound debate on who we are as Europeans, not likely to happen soon, due to the recent mismanagement of the European constitution process. The failure of individual Member States to come up with an attractive model of immigration policy in their own national realms is one more reason to worry and try to get it right at the EU level.
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I figured that there are some positive aspects about a small EU budget. Scarce resources at least obliges the EU to prioritise, it keeps subsidiarity a meaningful principle, and moreover…it obliges EU-politicians to use their imagination.
My warmest welcome to Blogeuropa.eu!
Miguel Carpintero
Comment by Miguel — May 17, 2006 @ 9:17 am