Forced returns on the rise

The number of individuals that are forced to return to their country of origin after an illegal stay in Belgium this year increased to 481 a month, compared with only 421 last year. “This figure increased by almost 15 percent,” according to a calculation by state secretary for Asylum and Migration, Theo Francken. “We are doing much more with this government even though we are unable to make full use of the capacity of the detention centres this year due to infrastructure works.”

By the spring of 2016 this capacity will be increased with 150 places to 605 places, an increase of 33 percent. “This will allow the government to increase the number of forced returns even more,” Francken adds. More than 130 additional staff will also be hired.

Priority: criminals
“We will be mild for the vulnerable but tough on those who commit abuses,” Francken promised when he was appointed. The state secretary has made the forced return of prisoners who illegal reside here his priority. With only a few months to go, the results of this approach are definitely spectacular. “By the end of September, 1,048 prisoners had effectively returned. This is 50 percent more than last year, when only 625 prisoners returned,” Francken notes with satisfaction. The results are also apparent in the number of return flights. “We now carry out two return flights on average every month, or three times as many flights compared with the same period last year. We make maximum use of European funds and the flights of Defence for this.”