News

On 6 February, the Commission welcomed the political agreement reached between the European Parliament and the Council of the EU on new rules for the Schengen Borders Code. This will strengthen EU coordination in managing cross-border health and security threats.

Over 4,000 asylum seekers in the EU have been relocated to other European countries under the current Voluntary Solidarity Mechanism. This cooperation allows asylum applicants to be relocated from their EU host country of first entry to another European country.

On 6 February, the Commission proposed a recast of the Directive 2011/93/EU to strengthen criminal law on child sexual abuse and sexual exploitation.

In a context of increasing polarisation around migration, the BRIDGES project aims at further understanding the production, evolution, and impact of migration narratives. Focusing on six European countries, the H2020 project addresses these narratives on an academic, policy, and societal level.

Every year, the Commission adopts its annual work programme setting out the list of the most important actions it will take in the year ahead.

On 23 January, the European Parliament and the Council reached a political agreement on new rules to reinforce the fight against trafficking in human beings. The agreed rules provide stronger tools for law enforcement and judicial authorities to investigate and prosecute new forms of exploitation.

On 24 January, the Commission, together with the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU, launched the European Ports Alliance and its Public-Private Partnership to step up the fight against drug trafficking and organised crime. 

In December, the EU attended the 10th Conference of the States Parties of the UN Convention against Corruption, among a record number of delegates and civil society representatives. The EU delivered on the commitments made in the Communication on the fight against Corruption of May 2023.

The Commission welcomes the Council’s decision to remove internal air and sea border controls between Bulgaria and Romania and the countries of the Schengen area, as of 31 March 2024.