Speech by President Séamus Boland, EESC plenary debate with Ylva Johansson, European Commissioner for Home Affairs

EESC plenary debate on Migration and skilled labour shortages (talent mobility package)

Dear Commissioner, dear colleagues,

Thank you very much for taking the time to discuss this topic with us, it is much appreciated;

Migration has for millennia been an integral part of human existence;

Such interactions and exchanges have led to enormous richness in terms of ideas, culture, technological and industrial advancements;

As an Irishman, migration has been part of our DNA and the same can be said for other parts of Europe: the Mediterranean and Scandinavia in particular;

It is this curiosity, thirst for adventure and desire for a better life, that are simply part of what it is to be human;

Regrettably today, the topic of migration has moved into a very negative zone;

It is a very political and emotive topic;

It is also a subject dominated by fears, nationalism and doomsday articles in the press over 'foreigners taking our jobs';

The example of Brexit being a case in point.

However, the reality is that over the next few years the EU will undergo massive demographic shifts, leading to severe pressures on our health, social security and pensions systems;

By 2040, the EU will have 17 million fewer people of working age compared to 2023 and lose a further ten million by 2050;

In contrast, during the same period Africa’s population is projected to expand from 1.4 to 2.1 billion and about half of the population will be under the age of 21;

These demographic imbalances in population size and age, as well as the climate emergency are likely to substantially increase both the pressure and the need for migration flows between Africa and the EU;

The challenge for the EU will be how to reduce irregular migration and replace it with well-managed legal migration, combined with effective and coordinated development policies;

It is only through such a comprehensive approach that the EU would be able to move towards a more favourable perception of migration.

Within this context, I would like to welcome the recommendations in the draft Opinion on the Talent Mobility Package;

It is not easy to identify sustainable solutions on this topic and even the proposals for Circular migration have their disadvantages in practice;

What is certain, is that these two subjects will remain top of the EU political agenda for a few more decades at least!