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After years of working closely on EU migration files and spending hours in tense committee meetings, this week MEPs Juan Fernando López Aguilar and Lena Düpont meet on The Ring. Vehemently opposed on how to handle EU asylum procedures, they took completely different stances on the recent EU reform that would allow EU member states to establish so-called “migration return hubs” in third countries.
The measure, voted on 26 March, would see rejected asylum seekers be transferred to external facilities outside EU borders while awaiting return to their country of origin. Supporters say it could help address a long-standing gap in the system.
For German MEP Lena Düpont from the centre-right European People’s Party, the policy is long overdue.
“This is the missing piece of the puzzle,” she said, arguing that the EU has already invested heavily in its asylum system but lacks an effective return mechanism. With only around 20% of those ordered to leave actually returned, she stressed that “an effective return policy is crucial.”
But Juan Fernando López Aguilar from the Socialists & Democrats strongly opposed this approach.
“Return hubs are not the answer — particularly when they are outside the borders of the European Union,” he said, warning that such centres “have no guarantees of respect for fundamental rights” and risk placing migrants beyond the remit of EU law.
López Aguilar also accused the centre-right of aligning with far-right groups to push through tougher migration measures.
“There’s been a new majority,” he said, criticising what he sees as a shift toward more hardline policies.
This episode of The Ring is anchored by Méabh Mc Mahon, produced by Luis Albertos and Amaia Echevarria, and edited by Vassilis Glynos.
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