Setting up reception and registration camps on Greek islands in the Aegean

Question for written answer  E-001031/2021
to the Commission
Rule 138
Bettina Vollath (S&D)

On 1.2.2021, the Greek Minister for Migration and Asylum publicly announced the construction of ‘five new, modern camps on the islands to improve conditions next winter’.

• 1.Since when has the Commission been aware of the Greek government’s plans to construct these camps? Where will they be, what stage has the planning reached, and when will they become operational?
• 2.In a discussion in the LIBE Committee on 27.1.2021, the Commission explained that some of the EUR 700 million promised to Greece by the EU in March 2020 would also be used for the construction of new camps. How much will be spent on the construction of each camp, and how many people will be housed in each camp?
• 3.The new camps are envisaged as reception and registration camps. How long will the maximum stay in the new camps be? Will asylum seekers be permitted to leave the camps, and what distribution system will ensure that dramatic events such as those which occurred in the Moria camp will not take place?