European nations set to discuss a tightening of migration rules

BRUSSELS — European leaders will call for a toughening of migration policies on Wednesday in a move critics say bends to pressure from far-right groups and harms basic human rights protections for vulnerable people.

Ministers from 27 EU member nations are meeting in Brussels to discuss countering migrant smuggling, with a keynote speech by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. In Strasbourg, France, representatives from the Council of Europe — 46 countries from Iceland to Azerbaijan — are expected to debate making deporting migrants easier for signatories to key treaties.

Denmark was part of a nine-nation attempt last year to curtail the power of the European Court of Human Rights, the independent legal arm of the Council of Europe. Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland argued that the court's interpretation of rights obligations prevented them from expelling migrants who commit crimes. That effort ultimately failed, but support for its basic tenets has since grown.

The European Court of Human Rights handles complaints against the Council of Europe, under the European Convention on Human Rights, including many cases involving migrants and asylum-seekers. The intergovernmental organization is not an EU institution and was set up in the wake of the World War II to promote peace and democracy.

Centrist and left-wing parties across Europe are coalescing around the idea of tougher migration policies as a way to blunt the momentum of far-right politicians exploiting discontent over immigration.

The prime ministers of Denmark and the U.K. published an op-ed in the Guardian newspaper on Tuesday calling for tightening migration controls to deny entry to those seeking better economic opportunities as opposed to fleeing conflict.

“For decades, citizens in our countries have demanded action. So we are acting — not to exploit these issues and stoke grievances as some do, but to find real solutions,” wrote Mette Frederiksen and Keir Starmer. “The best way of fighting against the forces of hate and division is to show that mainstream, progressive politics can fix this problem.”

Illegal border crossings into the EU were down 22% from January to October this year, according to Frontex, the EU’s border and coast guard agency. The agency recorded 152,000 unauthorized border crossings in the first 10 months of the year.

Most migration to Europe happens legally, by air, with some immigrants overstaying tourist visas.

The EU has spent billions of euros (dollars) to deter irregular migration, paying countries in Africa and the Middle East to intercept migrants trying to cross the Mediterranean of the Atlantic. At the same time, European nations facing labor shortages and an aging population are in desperate need of more workers and have been investing in programs to attract and train foreign workers.

The secretary-general of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset, said ahead of the Strasbourg meeting that the European Convention on Human Rights was “the final safeguard of individual rights and freedoms across our continent.”

“The convention’s future and Europe’s direction are inseparable,” he said.