Europe’s migration crisis: the moral and economic cost of a far-right agenda

It’s no longer a question of if the EU will stand up to the far right. Instead, EU leaders, who once positioned themselves as defenders of democratic values, are adopting measures that analysts claim put Donald Trump to shame.

This was on display earlier this month in Brussels where EU leaders did not discuss urgent issues like Ukraine, or Europe’s faltering industrial sector, but instead descended into chaotic debates over the future of millions fleeing war, prosecution and climate change.

The centre of these arguments was pinned around controversial ‘return hubs’, which would process asylum seekers outside Europe. Inspired by far-right leaders like Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, these hubs are part of a growing trend towards restrictive immigration policies, once fringe but that are now becoming mainstream.

While Meloni’s own courts ruled her immigration plans illegal, the EU’s adoption of far-right immigration policies indicate a stark departure of its human rights legacy.

For decades, the EU has been a world leader in its protection of particularly vulnerable groups such as women, children and disabled people. It has been a key participant  in the development of international commitments to safeguard these people at any cost, including the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

Not anymore.

Meloni is among the ringleaders responsible for the scapegoating of migrants, alongside far-right peers including Geert Wilders and Viktor Orbán. By blaming incoming migrants for rising inflation, or disabled people for healthcare constraints, they swerve the need to devise a practical, effective response.

But this blame game overlooks the fact that the far right prefer to point fingers rather than offer real solutions. The migration ‘crisis’ is, at best, a hyperbolic illusion. In fact, the short-term costs of accommodating incoming migrants are far outweighed by the benefits which they bring in the long term.

Expert economists at Leiden University recently revealed that almost every EU member state spends less on migrants than they do on their own population, while raking in higher returns. Even in Italy, where Meloni would have us believe that asylum seekers are a plague on the country, the evidence shows that migrants contribute much more than they cost.

Clearly, there are opportunities to be gained through policy measures that empower marginalised groups rather than casting them to the side. And it isn’t just migrants; official EU statistics show that gender equality could boost GDP by over €3tn. Even the inclusion of disabled people can help companies boost their revenues by more than a quarter.

The problem is our elected leaders are too busy playing cat –and mouse with the far right to stop and look at the facts. Meanwhile, our economy is faltering  under an eye-watering €800bn shortfall in funding. Our populations are rapidly aging, young professionals are seeking fortunes elsewhere and our core industries are struggling to stay afloat.

Now more than ever, we need policymakers who are bold and courageous. Cowardly imitations of the far right will lead to the same challenges. If we want different outcomes, we need a different approach.

In order to strengthen our struggling  economy, we need to embrace every individual as an empowered contributor to our society.

This is hardly a novel idea. Just days before the disastrous summit on immigration, the G7 gathered in Italy for a ministerial meeting on inclusion and disability. After two days of debate, they launched the Solfagnano Charter, pledging their dedicated commitment to the inclusion of disabled people in all aspects of economic, social and cultural life.

The bar was raised even higher by a sideline event in Rome the following day. The Open Futures Forum Roundtable, hosted by the Open Societies Foundation, expanded the discussion of disability rights to strengthen the representation of disabled women, particularly those from developing nations.

Sara Minkara, the US Department of State’s Special Advisor on International Disability Rights, warned that disabled people are largely excluded from efforts to tackle the world’s biggest challenges, from conflict and climate change to the digital revolution. She argued that inclusion is not just a moral obligation, but essential to solving these problems.

There are plenty of affordable yet impactful measures that the EU could introduce to promote inclusion and improve people’s lives while simultaneously strengthening our economy.

Its first priority should be to prepare people for work by streamlining the residency approval and permitting process for migrants and promoting inclusion in education and training. By establishing subsidised vocational training programmes, streamlining the process of recognising foreign qualifications and providing targeted courses on digital skills, it could replenish and futureproof the talent pool.

The next rung on the ladder would be to address diversity and inclusion in the hiring process. There is no use in forcing employers to interview minority candidates if their workplace cannot meet their needs. By introducing mandatory accessibility standards such as the provision of assistive technology or more flexible working arrangements, we could encourage more people to put themselves forward.

Finally, policymakers must keep themselves up to date with the latest research and development. They should invest in continuous research on the barriers experienced by minority groups and use this data to refine their plans. The outcomes of new policy measures should be regularly reviewed so that they can be optimised over time.

The choice is simple. Either we stoop to the same level as the far right and do their dirty work for them, or we challenge them head on with a bold new vision of moral leadership and economic growth.

It is not a matter of whether we can afford to be inclusive, but whether we can afford not to be.

The views expressed in this #CriticalThinking article reflect those of the author(s) and not of Friends of Europe.