Germany’s Scholz sceptical about migrant camps outside the EU

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed scepticism about the efficiency of possible new reception centres outside the European Union for migrants without the right to stay.

“It’s clear that concepts that represent very few small drops when you look at the figures, are not really the solution for a country as large as Germany,” Scholz said, arriving at an EU summit in Brussels, where migration is set to be at the top of the agenda.

Leaders are expected to discuss involving countries outside the EU in processing and accommodating irregular migrants as individual countries of the 27-member bloc take increasingly restrictive positions.

“We had over 300,000 people who came to Germany irregularly last year,” Scholz said, adding that centres that could house 1,000 or 2,000 people at a time would not help much.

“Reducing irregular migration is the prerequisite for the openness we need, including for the immigration of skilled workers,” Scholz said.