José Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission, has agreed to consider the temporary re-introduction of checks at the internal borders of the Schengen area in case of migration emergencies.

In a letter to Nicolas Sarkozy and Silvio Berlusconi, the leaders of France and Italy, Barroso said that such checks were “one possibility” under discussion as the Commission reviews the arrangements governing the Schengen border-free travel area.

Barroso’s letter, dated 29 April, is a response to a call by Sarkozy and Berlusconi last week (26 April) for the EU to help the two countries deal with an influx of illegal migrants from north Africa. The two countries had quarrelled over whether to allow 25,000 Tunisian migrants to cross the border into France from Italy.

Over the past couple of days, around 2,500 migrants – most of them fleeing Libya – are said to have arrived on Lampedusa, an Italian island off Tunisia. The arrivals sparked recriminations between Italy and Malta over who was responsible for rescuing boats that had sent distress signals.

Long-term plans

The Commission is on Wednesday (4 May) scheduled to adopt a paper on migration that includes a host of longer-term proposals.

The draft paper, seen by European Voice, says that “as a last resort” the EU should consider a mechanism “for a co-ordinated and temporary reintroduction of controls” at sections of the internal borders of the Schengen area. It says that the Commission is “exploring the feasibility” of such a mechanism and “may present” proposals “shortly”.

Under current rules, member states participating in the Schengen area – all  EU member states except Bulgaria, Ireland, Romania and the UK – can reintroduce temporary border checks for reasons of “public order” but not simply because of an upsurge in migration.

The paper says that the financial resources available for migration policy are “inadequate” and too difficult to mobilise. It suggests that home affairs funding in the EU’s next multi-annual financial framework, which is supposed to start in 2014, should be “adapted so that it can be mobilised much more rapidly and flexibly, including in third countries”.

The Commission also says that it “may decide” to activate the EU’s temporary protection directive for the very first time. The directive provides temporary protection to displaced persons across the EU.

The paper also calls on the member states to resettle, on a permanent basis, refugees from other countries who are currently in north Africa, a group primarily made up of Somalis, Sudanese and Eritreans.

The paper says it is “urgent” for member states and MEPs to approve before the end of June a Commission proposal for strengthening Frontex, the EU’s border management agency. The proposal would allow Frontex to own surveillance equipment – including boats and planes – to detect illegal migrants.

The draft paper outlines numerous other initiatives on longer-term migration issues that the Commission plans to launch in the coming months.

Member states’ interior ministers will next week (12 May) meet for an emergency session to discuss the EU’s response to migration from north Africa.

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