All European Union member states should lend Malta a helping hand in its plight against the “human tragedy” of irregular migration, European Commission president Jose Manuel Durao Barroso said yesterday, while promising to continue to “push this issue” with EU leaders.

Speaking during a parliamentary sitting, which was just one of the events arranged for his two-day visit to Malta, Mr Barroso spoke at length about the problem of irregular migration that is affecting Malta, its people and its financial and human resources. He also took the opportunity to remind Malta of its obligations to meet the criteria set by the Lisbon Agenda.

Mr Barroso had words of praise for the way Malta was tackling the migrant problem and assured the country that it “should be able to rely on the solidarity” of other EU member states.

“I understand your frustrations and your difficult situation, given your size and the demands put on your search and rescue teams, who have to work around the clock with limited resources, coping with large numbers of migrants. And here I would like to pay tribute to the Maltese authorities for taking in well over 300 irregular migrants in peril at sea in the last few weeks alone. Many people in the rest of Europe are simply unaware that the search and rescue area under the jurisdiction of Malta is larger than the landmass of the United Kingdom. Clearly, this is disproportionate to the current resources at the disposal of your country,” he said.

Mr Barroso said that the European Union must turn the principle of solidarity into action by providing help to Malta and other member states in managing the influx of irregular migrants.

He said the Frontex Patrols will be starting a new operation off the coast of Malta by the end of this month and added that the Libyan authorities have been invited to participate by sending at least one official on this operation.

The EU Commission had doubled the number of personnel and tripled the budget of Frontex last year, said Mr Barroso, adding that it is his intention to see the European Patrols Network, which started operations on 24 May, becoming – by the beginning of 2008 – a permanent tool available for member states to curb irregular migration.

In addition to this, he said, the Commission also plans to draw up practical guidelines for managing the EU’s external borders, covering search and rescue operations and the interception of vessels.

Moreover, he said, the European Refugee Fund, which comes into force on 1 January 2008, will include a special reserve that can be unblocked when a member state receives an enormous influx of irregular migrants, in addition to the resources that are already available to help member states in an emergency.

Mr Barroso also expressed his hope that the issue of migration will be a central theme at the EU-Africa Summit in Lisbon later on this year.

“The Commission cannot solve all the problems, not least because we do not have boats and planes. But I recognise that more must be done. Some political resistance is yet to be overcome. I have been pushing this issue hard with EU leaders for some time. I wrote to them all before they met to discuss immigration in 2005 and I will continue to push this issue with EU leaders, including at the EU Council meeting next week,” he said.

Turning to another issue, Mr Barroso referred to Malta’s EU membership, which he described as a “success story”, both for Malta as well as the EU. He said the country had managed to make great strides and is beginning to enjoy the fruits of EU membership.

However, he appealed to Malta to make more progress in one area in particular: the employment of women. He said that, in this regard, Malta has the EU’s lowest rate of female participation in the labour market, which stands at 34 per cent as opposed to the 60 per cent target of the Lisbon Agenda. “Malta is denying itself the full benefits of one of its key resources – its women,” he said.

Speaking about the adoption of the euro, Mr Barroso said that next week at the European Council, he will propose that Malta adopts the euro from 1 January 2008. “That is a remarkable achievement for Malta. Your preparations have been excellent. You deserve euro membership and I think you will benefit from the euro as an anchor of stability and security,” he said.

Prime Minister

Lawrence Gonzi

The problem of irregular migration was also an issue raised by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi in his speech in parliament. He said that last summer alone, more people had died on their journey from Africa to Europe, trying to find a better life, than had died during the conflict in Lebanon.

This is the dramatic situation Malta is in, he said.

The Prime Minister said that Malta’s position is not only difficult in terms of the limited and fully-stretched resources, but also in terms of its attempts to strike a balance between its belief in solidarity and helping people in need and giving the people who manage to land in Malta the dignity they deserve.

He said that for Malta, a person’s life is priceless, as is his or her dignity. But the challenge and mission to save these people and give them a better life is not only Malta’s prerogative but should be that of all EU member states. This is what solidarity is all about, he said.

Dr Gonzi said the only solution to the problem is the continued development of African countries, and he promised Malta’s help in this regard.

On the country’s achievement to which Mr Barroso had referred, Dr Gonzi said he was pleased that the Commission noted that Malta was getting closer to the targets of the euro, the implementation of the Schengen agreement and the targets of the Lisbon Agenda. He gave an assurance that his government was working hard to increase the number of women participating in the labour market, adding that most of the cohesion funds Malta received were sidelined to improve these figures.

Opposition Leader

Alfred Sant

In his speech in parliament, Opposition Leader Alfred Sant expressed his dissatisfaction that the promises of solidarity by way of

assistance from other EU member states have up to now failed to materialise and that that Malta is still not being helped with its problem.

He promised that the Malta Labour Party in opposition will assist the Maltese government in order to solve this problem. However, he warned, if this assistance is not forthcoming, a new Labour government in office will have no option but to take decisions that are in the best interests of the country and its citizens.

Dr Sant said the country’s resources are already stretched to the limit and Malta has to endure more tension as well as political, economical, social and financial burdens. “It is obvious: we cannot continue down this path,” he said.

The Labour Leader also expanded on the contribution of the MLP and its representatives at a European level. He said the MLP Members of the European Parliament have been making a valid contribution to Europe and its recent achievements. On a local level, MLP MPs are actively participating in the Malta-EU Steering Committee that analyses proposals and directive put forward by the European Commission.

Dr Sant said he was looking forward to working closely with Mr Barroso and the European Commission once the MLP is in government following the next general election in order to raise the social aspect higher on the EU’s agenda and draw up a social policy that suits all EU member states.