Lorenzo Piccoli

Funding for US immigration detention is on pace to be 62% larger than that of the entire federal prison system

Want to know what ICE is going to do with that money?

Read our brand-new article https://bit.ly/47Mk9Tc

Netherlands swings to centre after far-right setback Freedom party faces defeat after collapse of Geert Wilders-supported coalition government

No, FT, the story of the Dutch elections is not “Netherlands swings to centre”, but the fragmentation of political landscape, incl among the far-right. So Wilders’ PVV no longer clearly the largest, but combined seat tally of the far-right remains stable (+1).

giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/...

How to make immigration palatable in a populist age Guest-worker schemes are booming. They offer vast benefits to both host countries and the workers themselves

Guest-worker schemes and temporary migration are embraced even by populist-leaning governments because of labour-market pressures and demographic decline in richer countries. They often come with less job security, fewer rights, and greater precarity.

www.economist.com/finance-and-...

Belize agrees to host migrants seeking asylum in US Belize's prime minister says the deal will mean that migrants can apply for asylum in the country.

In 2025, Panama, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Honduras have taken people of various nationalities deported from the US.

Belize will now join this list, having signed an agreement to act as a "safe third country" for people who seek asylum in the United States.

www.bbc.com/news/article...

Belgium and Morocco strengthen ties with agreement on migrant returns and Western Sahara Following in the footsteps of France, Germany, the United States and the European Union, Belgium has now formally declared its support for...

Migration diplomacy at work: Belgium has endorsed Morocco's autonomy proposal for the territory of Western Sahara. The move coincides with a migration-return agreement and expansion of trade ties.

Check @tsourapas.bsky.social for more on this topic.

www.belganewsagency.eu/belgium-stri...

On 2 Nov, the controversial memorandum Italy-Libya will be renewed for three more years. Signed in 2017 to curb arrivals of asylum seekers via the Mediterranean, it’s been renewed in 2020 and 2022.

It costs an estimated €784M, incl. €214M in military, but the exact amount has never been disclosed.

Zohran Mamdani Explains His Rise

“People stop me and shout ‘free buses,’ ‘universal childcare,’ ‘freeze the rent.’ We’re building a movement around policies, not an individual person".

Regardless of whether you like him, this is important, and sadly lost on most left-wing parties in Europe.

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/16/p...

Where will this “I’m more extreme on immigration than anyone else” stop?

Several major UK parties now have policies on immigration that would make Le Pen or Wilders look like softies

Opinion | What Happened in Gaza Might Be Even Worse Than We Think

In the midst of everything else going on, we shouldn’t lose sight of this.

What Happened in Gaza Might Be Even Worse Than We Think www.nytimes.com/2025/10/23/o...

Netherlands to send migrants to Uganda in Trump-like deal Dutch government prepares to deport dozens of failed asylum seekers and braces for legal challenges

“It’s not only about solving the immediate problem of these cases, it’s also about the signal that we’re sending out” as a “deterrent”.

www.ft.com/content/e999...

Commission says exploratory talks with Taliban on returns already underway | Euractiv The EU does not formally recognise the Taliban regime that seized power in Afghanistan in 2021

The European Commission and European governments do not formally recognise the Taliban leadership in Afghanistan, but they are engaging with it to facilitate the deportation of Afghan nationals who lack the right to remain in the EU.

Giorgia Meloni’s government has lasted three years.

As of yesterday, it is now the third longest in Italy’s notoriously unstable republic.

This is possible because of her pragmatism, the discipline within her government coalition, and a weak opposition lacking a clear political programme.

📣 Call for Papers: Migration Power Europe

@irenefmolina.bsky.social & I are organising a workshop on EU migration politics, based on our @iajournal.bsky.social piece (lnkd.in/d_98wCDD), at @mpc-eui.bsky.social in Florence. Consider applying!

🗓 Deadline: 15 Nov
ℹ️ Details: www.eui.eu/events?id=58...

New rules, old frictions. The Migration and Asylum Pact to the test of solidarity between Member States The new EU legislation is to be fully implemented by June 2026. Belgium and Sweden warn: "No solidarity without Dublin." Poland calls off any relocation. Doubts also on mutual recognition of return de...

One week after the initial deadline, there is still no agreement on the solidarity mechanism of the Pact on Migration and Asylum of the EU.

With long negotiations behind closed doors, member states try to find a balance but this is proving difficult.

www.eunews.it/en/2025/10/1...

Changing Origins, Rising Numbers: Unauthorized Immigrants in the United States The 13.7 million unauthorized immigrants living in the United States as of mid-2023 reflect increasingly diverse origins, socioeconomic and labor market characteristics, family composition, and places...

Undocumented immigrants are ~26% of all U.S. immigrants. 80% have lived in the U.S. 5+ years, 45% for 20+. Mexicans now make up 40% of the undocumented population, down from 62% in 2010.

A remarkable new fact sheet by @migrationpolicy.bsky.social

www.migrationpolicy.org/research/una...

EU plans to expand Erasmus program to southern Mediterranean countries The inclusion of non-EU students from the bloc’s partners in Africa and the Middle East is part of the broader “Pact for the Mediterranean.”

As part of the “Pact for the Mediterranean”, the EU plans to expand the Erasmus exchange program to include Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Syria and Tunisia. This should facilitate issuance of visas in particular for students.

www.politico.eu/article/eu-e...

Sunday ride in Panzano, Chianti.

The Deportation Chain Reconstructing the complex mechanism of deportations and expulsions leading vulnerable refugees from Africa’s Mediterranean coast deep into the Sahara Desert

The Deportation Chain investigates forced expulsions from Tunisia and Algeria to Niger, tracing Abdallah’s journey through GPS data, WhatsApp logs, and testimonies, with support from Refugees in Libya and the Association for Juridical Studies on Immigration (ASGI).

liminal-lab.org/work/the-dep...

EU countries clash over how to share migration load Many governments want to pay rather than take in more asylum-seekers.

The Pact on Migration and Asylum was set to formally begin its life yesterday with the Commission’s first proposal on “solidarity” distribution.

However, disagreements among countries forced a delay, with no timeline for an agreement.

www.politico.eu/article/eu-c...

Op-ed: Moving beyond tough talk on migration to real solutions Politically driven quick fixes are crowding out policy. Europe must invest in a long-term migration architecture that works.

"Instead of disrupting the business model, the current approach to smuggling is boosting [it] ... Tighter European controls made the demand for their services increase and their work more profitable".

@bramfrouws.bsky.social at @mixedmigration.org

www.theparliamentmagazine.eu/news/article...

Yes, they were aware that I was taking the photo. I didn’t mention that I would share it on Bluesky, but the image doesn’t violate anyone’s privacy or depict anyone in a way that could embarrass or endanger them.

Every morning on my way to work, I dodge tripods and wedding gowns.

Apparently, the latest trend among wealthy Chinese couples is to fly here to Florence just for pre-wedding photos.

The Politics of Migration Narratives – In Conversation with Andrew Geddes | Review of Democracy Migration is one of the most salient issues in European politics today. While its importance for voting decisions is widely acknowledged, many of its key characteristics remain the subject of vivid de...

In this podcast, @andrewpgeddes.bsky.social talks about different narratives on migration and the role they play in policymaking, as well as the rise of right-wing populist actors across Europe.

tinyurl.com/4rj2jdjt

It feels good to kick-off the Effective Migration Governance training with 22 participants from government agencies, international organisations, NGOs, and the private sector.

This year’s focus: migration policy trade-offs.

A joint initiative @mpc-eui.bsky.social and @eui-stg.bsky.social.
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At least 142 people faced trial in the EU for helping migrants in 2024, mainly in Bulgaria, Greece, France, Italy, and Poland.

Read the full report by @picumofficial.bsky.social.

picum.org/wp-content/u...

Migration binds states together: host states need workers to fill critical sectors, sending states need remittances and employment opportunities. This creates interdependences that can be used strategically.

Read @tsourapas.bsky.social on the Co-Lab.

migrationresearchtopolicy.eu/2025/09/25/l...

Deeply worrying and shocking that not only most of Reform UK voters but also nearly half of Conservative voters think that permanent residents in the UK should be deprived of their “indefinite leave to remain”.

Canada issues new warning for citizens with gender-neutral passports travelling to U.S. | CBC News The Canadian government is warning citizens who list "X" as their gender on their passports could have problems entering the U.S.

The Canadian government has updated its travel advisory for the U.S., warning that those who have X listed as their gender on their passports could have problems at the border. www.cbc.ca/news/politic...

Italy: New deal scheduled to bring 1,000 refugees via humanitarian corridor Italian government representatives and a number of Christian organizations have signed a deal that will allow 1,000 refugees to be transferred from Lebanon over the next three years, via humanitarian ...

Over the next three years, about 1,000 refugees and vulnerable people currently living in Lebanon will be able to enter Italy through a humanitarian corridor, under an agreement signed by the Italian government and several Christian organisations.

www.infomigrants.net/en/post/6723...

This move might negatively impact research and innovation in the U.S.: H1b was a common visa for excellent postdoc scientists to move to the U.S.

www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-h...