For its part, the Commission should develop recommendations on developing immigration liaison officer networks.

If immigration liaison officers can make the work of, for example, Frontex more efficient, then that is a positive thing.

We have created the immigration liaison officers' network.

With this new regulation, we hope that this immigration liaison officers network will become more effective.

Creation of an immigration liaison officers' network (debate)

I do not believe that this EU immigration liaison officers' network has any power to stop this happening at all.

I agree with the amendment of the regulation aiming to enhance cooperation between Frontex and immigration liaison officers.

In this regard, it has become imperative to institute closer cooperation between the immigration liaison officer networks and Frontex.

Let us therefore consider creating effective joint patrols for the maritime borders, a European border police force or a network of immigration liaison officers.

We can have as many immigration liaison officers and Frontex staff as we want but, in the meantime, the problem will just keep on getting worse.

Immigration Liaison Officers (ILOs) are indeed engaged in quite complex and opaque activities.

Moving on to the substance of this issue, the immigration liaison officers' network was created by Council Regulation (EC) No 377/2004.

Nonetheless, the fact that we are going to have these immigration liaison officers that will facilitate the communication of information to Frontex is an extremely positive development.

I am in favour of this regulation, which seeks to amend the regulation of 19 February 2004 on the creation of an immigration liaison officers network.

An estimated 75 percent of this year's winners already live in the United States, said James McIntire, Irish vice consul and immigration liaison officer.

Informal cooperation between immigration liaison officers already exists and this initiative is intended to give this cooperation a framework that will formalise it and strengthen it.

The creation of a network of immigration liaison officers is one more step towards a centralised measure controlled by the European Union that serves the spreading of immigrants and refugees.

As the agency's activities concern migration within EU territory, immigration liaison officers posted to third countries can make a decisive contribution to Frontex achieving its objectives outside the Union.

(DE) Madam President, the Member States send immigration liaison officers to third countries in order to combat illegal immigration in contact with the authorities in those countries.

I voted against the report on the creation of an immigration liaison officers network because it is designed to further reinforce Frontex, which does all it can to promote the idea of Fortress Europe.

A dense network of immigration liaison officers and their close cooperation is therefore a sensible measure to enable us effectively to combat mass immigration into Europe with all its negative consequences for the peoples of Europe.

On a positive note, however, the report provides for the creation of a network of immigration liaison officers posted to consular authorities and to international organisations, with responsibility for preventing illegal immigration and facilitating the repatriation of illegal immigrants.

As Commissioner Vitorino pointed out, the Seville European Council called for a network of immigration liaison officers to be created and the Thessaloniki conclusions stated the need to speed up work on adopting a legal instrument by the end of 2003.

I believe that Parliament's position on amendments to Council Regulation (EC) No 377/2004 on the creation of an immigration liaison officers network contributes to the appropriate management of legal as well as illegal or clandestine flows of migrants.

The Commission is of the view that this network must ensure the necessary exchange of information between immigration liaison officers and also the coordination that the Member States must develop with third countries in order to work together in the field of European immigration policy.