The European Commission announced on Tuesday a proposal to reinforce the capacity of the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) to protect EU external borders and turning it into the EU's “central actor” for returns of illegal migrants.
According to the Commission, Frontex has already made progress on migration. Illegal border crossings have more than halved over the past two years, and the return rate has increased to over 30%.
“But good policy never stands still,” said Magnus Brunner, Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration, when he presented the proposal. “We propose that Frontex will be able to act faster. With a quick reaction force that can deploy within 24 hours and spot risks early, before an event becomes a crisis. And finally, Frontex will be stronger, better equipped and organised.”
In the press briefing (27 October), he stressed that security is the basis for everything in the EU, including democracy and freedom. For the first time, EU has a common approach to tackle what he called illegal migration – an issue that has been fueling far-right parties in the member states.
By updating Frontex’ mandate from 2016, engaging in “migration diplomacy” with non-EU countries, doubling the budget to Frontex and tripling its headcount, the Commissioner expects the EU to restore control of the situation. For the Commission’s proposal for a new Frontex regulation, click here.
Frontex is currently allocated a budget of almost €6 billion. The proposal to further strengthen Frontex will require adequate financial resources in line with the Commission proposal for the Frontex budget in the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2028-2034 (€11.8 billion).
Doubts about management capacity
Increasing the headcount will be a gradual process. Frontex has currently almost 3,000 staff members who work for the agency and by 2027 its standing corps will reach 10,000 officers. 7,000 existing staff are seconded from member states. In addition, a new European Border and Return Reserve will be created, which will reach 17,000 officers.
Officers of this reserve force will remain at the disposal of member states, working as national border guards, and can be deployed to Frontex when the need for their deployment at the external borders arises.
In June 2021, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) published a critical audit report about the management of Frontex. The auditors found that Frontex had not been sufficiently effective in helping member states in managing the EU’s external frontiers and doubted its capacity to effectively implement the new operational role that had been assigned to it then.
ECA’s follow-up of the audit recommendations three years later showed that some of them had not been implemented.
Frontex was supposed to increase “exponentially” its operational staff to 10 000 by 2027 and its annual budget to around €900 million – all this according to political decisions without any impact assessment. Apparently, Frontex did not use the budget increase to recruit more staff. Commissioner Brunner commented that the huge expansion of staff and budget was a request from the member states.
The proposal also includes a dedicated Return Coordination Centre to collect and analyse operational information, an Online Monitoring and Response Centre with the mandate for Frontex to monitor social media content, and a Quick Reaction Force to be deployed at the external border at very short notice to assist member states to swiftly address any crisis and emergency at the external borders.
Some of the proposals can be seen as a follow-up of the Ceuta migration crisis, which the Commission blamed on disinformation on social media. Frontex will become a trusted flagger under the Digital Services Act.
A Commission spokesperson told The Brussels Times that there already is an explicit mandate for Frontex to monitor publicly accessible social media content relevant for external border management, and support action against illegal online content linked to border-security risks.
“With this new mandate, Frontex will have the possibility to ask national competent authorities to issue removal orders in line with the relevant the Digital Services Act (DSA) provisions. Additionally, it may apply for trusted flagger status under DSA to the national Digital Services Coordinator.”
Compliance with fundamental rights
A controversial element in the proposal is the possibility for Frontex to organise and carry out returns from non-EU countries to other non-EU countries with the support of the Return Coordination Centre. For such returns, specific agreements need to be concluded at EU level with the third countries concerned in compliance with fundamental rights and international standards.
Who ultimately will be responsible for the return orders is not clear and will be part of the agreement, the Commissioner explained.
Frontex has been accused in the past of illegal pushbacks of migrants. A European Parliament committee did not trust the EU agency on the reporting of pushbacks at the Greek border.
The Commission says that allegations are examined by the Frontex Fundamental Rights Office. Its monitors have a duty to report suspected violations to the national authorities that will have to deal with them.
It is now for the European Parliament and the Council to agree on the proposals. MEP Tineke Strik, Greens/EFA coordinator on migration and rapporteur on the Returns Directive during the previous mandate, is critical.
“Instead of chasing evidence-based, pragmatic policies, the Commission is pandering to populism and the far-right on migration,” she commented, referring to the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the federal law enforcement agency which has been criticized for its aggressive targeting of illegal migrants, including legal residents, and human rights violations.
Opponents of a proposed Belgian bill, which would allow authorities to enter private residences under specified conditions to detain people subject to removal decisions, has been compared with the ICE.
“We need a human rights-based approach to border management and Frontex plays a key role," Strik added. "But instead the Commission risks turning Frontex into a European version of ICE as they listen to right-wing rhetoric that dehumanises migrants and treats people as a security threat.”
“Working hand in hand with autocrats and despots risks making the EU’s border agency complicit in serious human rights violations abroad. Working with third countries, without proper oversight or accountability is a threat to fundamental rights and respect for international law, while leaving Frontex staff in legal limbo outside of European law.”
