On 7 November, the European Commission launched a new Committee on Resettlement and Humanitarian Admission as part of the implementation of the Pact. The committee will work on the EU’s two-year plan for refugees, determining the numbers and countries of resettlement.
On 5 November, the hearing of Magnus Brunner, Commissioner designate for Internal Affairs and Migration, took place. He explained that his mandate will focus on ensuring the full and correct implementation of the Pact. He will also seek closer cooperation with transit and third countries, and one of his priorities is to reform the Return Directive.
On 4 November, the hearing of Dubravka Šuica, Commissioner designate for the Mediterranean, took place. On the issue of migration, she stated that she would fight illegal migration, carry out involuntary returns as well as work on a new Pact for the Mediterranean.
On 30 October, a UNHCR representative declared that “return hubs can work as an incentive for rejected asylum seekers to go back home, because they are no longer on European soil” and announced that UNHCR was working with the EU Commission to ensure that the centers comply with international law.
On 29 October, an EU delegation visited Tunisia to verify compliance with the EU-Tunisia 2023 deal. However, the visit was subject to a media blackout.
On 28 October, Politico revealed that the European Commission is expected to appoint a special envoy for Syria, after numerous countries pushed for a renewal of diplomatic relations with Syria following the war in Lebanon, which led to mass displacement.
On 28 October, the President of the European People’s Party (EPP), Manfred Weber, met with the President of Egypt, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, to discuss the migration issue and the creation of a new pact for the Mediterranean, in particular to stop illegal migration in the region.
On 23 October, the European Ombudsman, Emily O’Reilly, published the outcome of the inquiry into the EU-Tunisia agreement and it accused the EU of never publishing the human rights information it relied on before signing the deal with Tunisia. The Commission has indeed allegedly conducted a risk management exercise (although not a formal Human Rights Impact Assessment) prior the MoU with Tunisia but has not published any information about it. The European Ombudsman called on the Commission to publish said human rights analysis, as well as the ‘specific criteria’ that would lead to the suspension of EU funding for human rights violations.
On 23 October, the European Parliament held a debate on the effective and holistic management of migration through the promotion of return. The Commission is committed to speeding up the implementation of some elements of the Pact and will develop a new Return Directive in the coming weeks and months.
