Divisons of labour - rethinking Europe's migration policy

The European Union is confronted with major immigration challenges. There are mounting immigration pressures from poorer countries, Europe is falling behind in the global competition for talent and it also needs to sustain its humanitarian commitment to accommodate refugees. Further, there are major integration problems as the aspirations of second generation migrants are often frustrated. Crucially, there is disagreement about what should be done and at what level – EU or national? This Bruegel Blueprint attempts to answer these controversial questions against the background of the European ‘pact on immigration’ set to be adopted under the 2008 French EU presidency. It recommends that the EU focus on high-skilled legal migration, irregular migration and humanitarian migration while low-skilled legal immigration and integration policies should remain a national remit. Among several specific proposals is a strengthening of the EU ‘Blue Card’, a term originally coined by Bruegel and now a key part of the EU policy debate on how best to attract skilled migrants to Europe.