Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)
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155. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if her attention has been drawn to the fact that the European Commission, in December 2016, recommended that member states resume sending asylum seekers who first entered the EU in Greece back to Greece from March 2017; and the exact date that this will start happening. [10146/17]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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On 8December 2016, the European Commission issued a Recommendation to Greece proposing the gradual resumption of transfersto Greece under the Dublin Regulation. The gradual nature reflects the ongoing migratory pressures faced by Greece and the challenges which still exist in the Greek asylum system, particularly in relation to reception conditions, the treatment of vulnerable applicants and the timeframe for the processing of applications. The Recommendation further sets out that transfers to Greece should only be resumed on the basis of individual assurances for each returnee to be given by the Greek authorities with a guarantee that they will be treated with dignity. Guarantees must also be given that the applicant will be treated in accordance with EU law. No transfers of unaccompanied minors are foreseen for the time being. The resumption of transfers is not to be applied retroactively and will only apply to applicants who have entered Greece irregularly from 15 March 2017 onwards or for whom Greece is responsible from this date under the Dublin Regulation criteria.

A team of Member States’ experts will be established by the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) to report on whether or not the applicants to be transferred back to Greece are being treated in accordance with the guarantees received from Greece. The Commission will regularly monitor progress on the implementation of these recommendations and has indicated that it will issue further recommendations if required. The Recommendation notes that exclusive competence for the decision in respect of transfers to Greece rests with the individual Member States’ authorities under the control of the courts, which may make preliminary references to the European Court of Justice on the interpretation of the Dublin Regulation.