COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION:Results of today's JHA Council (Home Affairs)

COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION Brussels, 3 March 2014   Results of today's JHA Council (Home Affairs) Migratory pressures (trends and outlook) The Council and the mixed committee (the EU plus Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland) took note of the information provided by the Commission and the agencies on the latest developments and trends concerning migratory flows towards Europe. The Council agreed to follow these developments closely. It also invited the Commission and the agencies to continue monitoring the situation closely and to inform the Council as regards new developments and trends. Task Force Mediterranean The Council and the mixed committee welcomed the progress achieved so far in the five key areas listed in the Commission communication on the work carried out by the Task Force for the Mediterranean and invited all relevant stakeholders to continue to actively participate in the implementation of the operational actions. It also invited the Commission to present a comprehensive report of the activities carried out at the JHA Council in June. EUROPOL Regulation The Council had a policy debate on the proposal for a regulation on the European Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation and Training (Europol). Given that a very large majority of delegations oppose the merger of Europol and CEPOL (European Police College) proposed by the Commission, the draft Europol regulation will be modified accordingly. Member states agreed on the need to update the existing CEPOL decision in the light of the Treaties post-Lisbon and invited the Commission to present a legislative proposal on the new legal basis for CEPOL as soon as possible. Other business The Council was informed by the Presidency about the agreements reached with the European Parliament on a number of legislative proposals, including: - the regulation establishing rules for the surveillance of the external sea borders in the context of operational cooperation coordinated by the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the External Borders of the Member States of the European Union (Frontex). See press release. - the directive on conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals in the framework of an intra-corporate transfer.