Solidarity and fair sharing of responsibility in EU immigration and asylum policy : what system for addressing the challenges of illegal immigration and asylum in Malta?

Abstract

EU policy on illegal immigration and asylum has developed greatly over the past decade, with the adoption of several legislative instruments imposing wide-ranging responsibilities on the Member States. However, the impact of these measures differs among Member States depending on the migration and asylum flows each faces, and the characteristics of, and resources available to, the particular Member State. As a result, responsibility in these policy fields is inequitably distributed among the Member States. Malta receives large numbers of irregular immigrants and asylum-seekers due to its geographical position. Likewise, a large proportion are found eligible for international protection. However, Malta's absorption capacity is significantly limited by its geographic and demographic characteristics. Therefore, Malta carries heavily disproportionate responsibility when considered in the context of capacity and compared to other Member States. The Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union has enshrined the obligation for the principle of solidarity and fair responsibility-sharing to govern all immigration and asylum policies adopted within the EU. On this basis, and against the backdrop of the EU's commitment to the completion of a Common European Asylum System, this thesis argues that a fair distribution of asylum responsibility among the Member States is essential if the EU's asylum framework is to remain adequate. Rhetorical commitments to greater solidarity must therefore be translated into tangible practical action. This thesis therefore analyses three approaches to fair responsibility-sharing, namely policy harmonisation, financial and technical assistance, and physical responsibility-sharing. After examining the possible variations in the implementation of all three and their likely impact, the thesis concludes that only physical responsibility-sharing can be effective in securing an equitable distribution of responsibility among the Member States, taking into account the circumstances obtaining in each, particularly with regard to geography, demography, and resources. Policy harmonisation alone would have the 4 perverse effect of widening discrepancies in asylum responsibility carried by the Member States, but if combined with physical responsibility-sharing it could create a stronger basis for the successful and efficient implementation of the latter. Likewise, financial and technical assistance would be insufficient in that they cannot address all forms of pressure or responsibility. However, they should be combined with physical responsibility-sharing in order to facilitate the latter and render it more effective. The best approach would thus be a combination of all three forms of solidarity, with physical responsibility sharing constituting the core component.