New Report Lays Out Future of Migration in Europe

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For Immediate ReleaseSeptember 12, 2007Contact: Colleen Coffey, 202-266-1910ccoffey@migrationpolicy.org
New Report Lays Out Future of Migration in Europe
A functioning migration system in Europe must treat sending and transit countries as genuine partners, according to a new report lead written by Migration Policy Institute President Demetrios G. Papademetriou and Senior European Policy Fellow Gregory A. Maniatis.
Gaining from Migration: Towards a New Mobility System is the culmination of more than three years of comprehensive research by a group of internationally renowned policy experts. Published by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), it will be released tomorrow in Lisbon during the European Union's Ministerial Conference on Legal Migration. The Portuguese government has made a comprehensive approach to migration management a top policy priority for its EU Presidency, and MPI is assisting the Presidency with its work on migration.

The report notes that EU policymakers should forego restrictive rhetoric and instead create more legal channels and flexible options for immigrants’ entry and stay, because doing so will attract workers in industries that most need them. At the same time, and in recognition of the fact that immigration cannot succeed unless immigrants integrate successfully, European countries must become more flexible in giving immigrants access to their labor markets and political systems.

Taking these steps, according to the report, would not only make the European Union more economically competitive in the global marketplace, they would generate public confidence in policymakers’ ability to govern on migration. [Read more]