Common EU Migration Policy to Allow Unprecedented Waves of Immigration

UK Independence Party (UKIP) head Nigel Farage called on EU authorities to emulate Australia's tough approach to limiting migrants from gaining access to their countries.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The rapid implementation of a common EU migration and asylum policy would trigger a colossal influx of migrants into the bloc, UK Independence Party (UKIP) head Nigel Farage said in a speech before the European Parliament on Wednesday.

"[The Common migration policy is] a colossal change that opens the EU to levels of immigration from Africa and elsewhere that are unimaginable," Farage said in Strasbourg.

The eurosceptic leader called on EU authorities to emulate Australia's tough approach to limiting migrants from gaining access to their countries.

"Stopping the boats is the only sure fire way of stopping the drowning," he stressed.

According to Farage, European civilization faces a direct threat if it allows ever-larger numbers of what he, at best, considers poor, uneducated and untrained people from war-torn regions to arrive on its shores.

Earlier in April, about 900 migrants drowned in the Mediterranean while heading to the European Union from Africa. The tragedy, the largest Mediterranean death-by-drowning incident in decades, and other similar incidents caused the bloc to reassess its strategy on the issue.

On April 23, the meeting of the European Council agreed to boost funding for search and rescue operations in the region, counter smuggling operations and deploy immigration officers in countries outside the EU borders.