Source: European Parliament
Question for written answer E-002528/2025
to the Commission
Rule 144
Mary Khan (ESN), Petra Steger (PfE)
14 June 2025 marked the 40th anniversary of the entry into force of the Schengen Agreement. However, instead of a cause for celebration, this anniversary provides above all an occasion to deliver a sobering assessment: The former promise of secure and control-free internal borders has developed into a serious threat to internal security and public order in view of the ongoing loss of control at the EU’s external borders. Instead of an area of security, freedom and the rule of law, Schengen has become a gateway for people smuggling, organised crime and Islamist terror.
A functioning Schengen system requires effective external border controls and a clear distinction between legal and illegal migration. In reality, neither of these is guaranteed, which is why Member States are increasingly forced to adopt their own protective measures in the form of internal border controls. However, the Schengen Borders Code allows this only temporarily – a paradoxical scenario, as these measures only become necessary in the first place due to the EU’s failure to fulfil its duties. These circumstances raise fundamental questions about the viability of the Schengen area in the future.
- 1.What concrete measures is the Commission taking to finally protect the EU’s external borders effectively?
- 2.Does the Commission recognise that, without a clear distinction between legal and illegal migration, Schengen has been gutted when it comes to security policy?
- 3.Does the Commission consider it proportionate that Member States are allowed to respond only temporarily to systemic failures on the part of the EU, even though the threat of illegal mass migration is on the rise?
Submitted: 24.6.2025