Debate on crime: Schuster wants more rejections

In a Bundestag debate on the police crime statistics for 2023, Saxony's Interior Minister Armin Schuster called for more deportations at German borders. "We want to integrate sensibly", said the CDU politician on Wednesday in Berlin during a topical debate requested by the CDU/CSU. However, if too many asylum seekers came to Germany at once, some of whom then had to be housed in tents or gymnasiums, this would not be possible. However, a lack of integration could encourage more crime among immigrants. As a member of the Bundesrat, Schuster also has the right to speak in the Bundestag.

"I see good reasons today to make use of the extended options for rejection," added Schuster. The Chancellery did not believe for a long time that this was possible, said Schuster, who had criticized the migration policy of then Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) during his time as a member of the Bundestag. However, he said that it was now more than obvious that the Dublin system for distributing asylum seekers in Europe was not working, which is why Germany no longer had to adhere to it.

The Dublin Regulation stipulates that another EU country is responsible for an asylum seeker if they have applied for protection there or entered the country first. Deportation must then take place within six months. This period can only be extended in exceptional cases. After that, the asylum seeker becomes the responsibility of the Federal Republic of Germany. According to the Federal Government, most Dublin transfers from Germany were made to Austria last year (1534). Germany only transferred eleven asylum seekers to Italy in the entire year - out of a total of 15,479 transfer requests.

The debate in the plenary was characterized by accusations of populism from the SPD and Greens towards the CDU/CSU and AfD. "The best crime policy is a good social policy," said Martina Renner (Left Party).

In 2023, around 5.94 million crimes were registered nationwide - 5.5% more than in the previous year. According to the statistics published on Tuesday, the proportion of foreign suspects increased by 2.5 percentage points and stood at 34.4 percent in 2023, if immigration law violations are not taken into account. However, as in the previous year, the proportion of foreigners in the population also increased in 2023.

Schuster called for a "repatriation offensive" for non-German multiple and intensive offenders. This small group is responsible for a large proportion of crimes committed by foreigners in Saxony.