Press Release: Improving the exchange of information on national asylum and immigration policies

The Council has adopted a Decision on the establishment of a mutual information mechanism concerning measures Member States take in the areas of asylum and immigration, 5 October 2006. This Decision is based on a proposal from the Commission, presented on 10 October 2005 at the initiative of Commission Vice-President Frattini. It is based on the recognition that the absence of border checks in the Schengen area and the gradual development of a common EU asylum and immigration policy have increased the interdependency of national policies in these fields. This Decision creates an organised channel for information exchange on, and a discussion of, national measures Member States take in the areas of asylum and immigration.