PES Migration & Integration Network: Progressives call for a balanced European approach to migration

The Party of European Socialists (PES) Migration & Integration Network met to discuss key aspects of migration governance, including regularisation, return policies and migration relations between the European Union and the African Union.

The meeting brought together ministers, Members of the European Parliament, representatives of international organisations, and leading experts to exchange views on how to advance credible, humane and sustainable migration governance in Europe.

Opening the meeting, Ana Catarina Mendes, Chair of the PES Migration & Integration Network and S&D Vice-President, said:

"We welcome Spain's regularisation programme as a constructive and forward-looking example of pragmatic and rights-based migration governance. It has the potential to strengthen governance, protect workers and address Europe's labour and demographic challenges. At EU level, an excessive focus on returns risks repeating past shortcomings and undermining partnerships, particularly with the African Union. A credible European return policy must be rights-based, prioritise voluntary departures, protect minors and strengthen sustainable cooperation alongside legal pathways. Effective migration governance must be evidence-based, combining a balanced return framework with genuine cooperation built on shared interests and mutual benefit."

Representing Spain, Eva Martínez Montero, Chief of Staff to the Secretary of State for Migration, highlighted the country's regularisation programme as a structured and legally framed measure aimed at formalising work, improving registration, and addressing labour shortages linked to Europe's demographic realities.

The discussion also addressed the proposal for a new Regulation on Return and the evolving nature of EU-AU migration relations. Participants underlined that effective migration governance must reconcile human rights obligations, labour market needs and long-term demographic challenges.

António Vitorino, Chairperson of the Portuguese National Council on Asylum and Migration and former Director General of the International Organization for Migration, together with Ottilia Anna Maunganidze, Head of Special Projects at the Institute for Security Studies, a South Africa-based research institute focused on human security and governance, and Ferruccio Pastore, Director of FIERI (International and European Forum of Research on Immigration), an Italian migration policy research institute, contributed to the debate. Speakers stressed the need for genuine partnership with third countries and long-term governance solutions grounded in multilateral cooperation, labour mobility and shared interests.

The meeting reaffirmed the importance of pursuing structured dialogue and effective solutions that respond to demographic realities, labour market needs, and Europe's international responsibilities.