Migration and Welfare in Europe

Thursday, April 14, 2016
Rhapsody (DoubleTree by Hilton Philadelphia Center City)
Ermelinda Durmishi , Sociology, University Alexander Moisiu
Half a million migrants and refugees are known to have entered the European Union during the first eight months of 2015; that number may increase to more than one million before the year is through.  The 27-th European Union countries have had different reactions regarding the migration issue; some of them being supporter and some of them not, but all of them are reviewing their migration policy. Sweden Prime Minister Stefan Löfven declared “We need to decide right now what kind of Europe we are going to be. My Europe takes in refugees. My Europe doesn't build walls"; Andreas Kamm, the secretary general of the Danish Refugee Council declared “"We are experiencing a historical imbalance between the very high numbers of refugees and migrants and the global capacity to provide them with protection and assistance...”; Germany expects to receive a total of 800,000 refugees and migrants this year and Angela Merkel is supporting the migration, UK will accept refugees too. All three represent today different types of welfare: social-democrat/ Nordic model represented by Sweden and Denmark, Conservative/Corporatist Model represented by Germany and Anglo-Saxon/Liberal Model represented by UK. Today Europe and specially countries which has applied the real welfare are reconsidering their capacity of welfare continuity. The question will be how and to what extent will be affected the welfare in Europe from migration?