Expectations for EU migration deal low as Swedish authorities all however shuts doorways to migrants

Regardless of an imminent EU summit on migration in February, the brand new Swedish Council Presidency is displaying no signal of wanting to assist push by means of the bloc’s lengthy gridlocked measures on the difficulty.

The EU’s Pact on Migration and Asylum goals to reform Europe’s method to migration, with a concentrate on shared accountability and solidarity on the subject of migrants coming to the continent.

However with Stockholm, whose new right-wing authorities is propped up by the far-right Sweden Democrats, taking on the bloc’s agenda-setting EU Council Presidency for the subsequent six months, hopes aren’t excessive in Brussels.

Swedish Minister of Employment and Integration, Johan Pehrson, argues that extra migration might push down wages.

“It’s important to maintain it on a socially acceptable degree, with respectable wages…consistent with the reforms we’ve launched in Sweden to ensure that folks work for an honest pay,” he advised Euronews.

Studying the language, getting details about social companies, housing and employment are what migrants and refugees search at Caritas welcoming centre in Stockholm.

The Nordic nation has a protracted custom of welcoming foreigners, however in keeping with George Joseph, Managing Director at Caritas Sweden, one thing has modified.

“A lot of the surveys present about 60% of the inhabitants was optimistic in direction of migration till just a few years in the past,” Joseph stated. 

“After which the entire thing modified, and partly additionally because of the unfavorable narrative by political management making a narrative about connecting migration with all of the criminality and what went flawed within the society and blaming the migrants and migration for the whole lot.”

Two million folks in Sweden are foreign-born — about 20% of the inhabitants. Round 600,000 have their very own companies and contribute to the financial system, in keeping with Caritas, however now they’re dealing with an increasing number of mistrust. 

Julius Ntobuah, a mediator at Caritas Sweden, advised Euronews that he arrived from Cameroon eight years in the past and has seen how the nation has slowly closed its doorways.

“I feel everyone knows that with the brand new authorities in place, it’s like: ““Goodbye!” Sweden is full, we don’t need extra folks,” he stated.

“Which is unlucky as a result of we have been a really welcoming and beneficiant nation. However as time goes by, immigration legal guidelines have gotten very robust and harder. And, yeah, it is unlucky. I’d advise to not come as a result of it is now not welcoming to be right here.”

Even supposing there will likely be stress from the European Parliament and a few member states – particularly Italy – the Swedish authorities doesn’t intend to have migration as a precedence. 

It’s possible that any selections taken will likely be throughout the Spanish EU Council Presidency, within the second half of the 12 months.