The EU’s Border Agency cannot effectively combat illegal immigration and is struggling to cope with its assigned duties according to auditors.
Frontex was handed more responsibilities in policing the bloc’s borders after the 2015 migration crisis but it has become overstretched, said a report by the European Court of Arbitration, the EU’s financial watchdog.
It has almost 10,000 officers and its budget will increase to £774m by 2027 up from just £16.3m in 2006. It had just 45 officers in 2005, the year after it was created.
Frontex was “biting off more than it could chew,” the report’s lead author, Leo Brincat said.
Mr Brincat said, “This is especially worrying at a time when Frontex is being given added responsibilities.”
“We are not saying ‘scrap Frontex’ but definitely Frontex is often its own worst enemy,” the former Maltese minister added.
Auditors also accused Frontex of a lack of transparency in detailing the real cost of its joint operations.
A Frontex spokesman said it had “undergone a massive transformation that would have challenged any organisation, especially in the times of the COVID pandemic.”
He told Deutsche Welle that Frontex was aware improvements were needed. “Unfortunately, many of the raised issues are related to external factors outside of the agency’s control,” he added.
Editor-in-Chief | Carl D. Pearson has been involved in British politics and media from an early age, with the key knowledge of what it takes to run a news organisation for the 21st century. Mr Pearson, as Editor-in-chief, is responsible for supervising the daily tasks of publishing media and content to UNN’s website and various platforms.
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