Speaking at an international conference in Strasbourg – the Plenary of the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly – North East Herts MP Oliver Heald spoke out strongly in favour of the rule that asylum seekers must apply for asylum in the first country they arrive in.
Oliver is a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and was speaking out against moves to change the current position, where migrants must claim asylum in the first country in which they arrive. This plea by southern countries for “flexibility” and “shared responsibility” is a response to the increase in numbers of migrants from North Africa to countries in the southern part of Europe, such as Italy and Greece. Oliver also called for tougher measures against people traffickers, describing some of their actions as “akin to murder”. He also called for more joint patrolling and better border controls in the southern part of Europe.
Speaking in the debate, Oliver Heald said, “We all need to do better... it is still clear...that large numbers of people are crossing the EU’s external borders illegally, undetected. We ought to do more to ensure better working arrangements, as the EU is trying to do. Joint patrolling...is important. We should also do more to pick up the people in the boats quickly, so that they are helped and not just left adrift for days on end.
We also ought to try to catch the people traffickers, who are criminals. They are committing murder, casting adrift in the ocean vulnerable people in ships that do not work. That is akin to murder, and it needs to be tackled...there is much more that we could do. I do not think that we should give up the Dublin principle; it is right that applications are dealt with in the first country of arrival, but those countries need help and we should not be found wanting.”