Europe spends billions deporting migrants

European nations have spent around 11.3 billion euros deporting illegal migrants in the past 15 years and a further 1.6 billion euros protecting their borders, according to a study by journalists.

The research was published at a time when the European Union is getting ready to up its efforts against illegal migration, while also urging reluctant member nations to open their doors to tens of thousands of refugees and asylum seekers.

The study was carried out by a team of European journalists and other groups, collectively known as the Migrants’ Files, and noted that the 28 EU member states, as well as Switzerland, Iceland and Norway had spent in excess of 11.3 billion euros deporting millions of migrants since the turn of the millennium.

The data provided revealed that Frontex, the EU border agency, spent in the region of one billion euros on securing its borders, while Mediterranean nations outlaid no less than 70 million euros on buying boats, drones, border monitoring hardware, vehicles and night vision equipment.

The report also showed that to deport each individual migrant it costs 4,000 euros, half of which goes towards transportation. Meanwhile, illegal migrants have spent in excess of 15.7 billion euros to travel to the continent.

More than 100,000 people made the often treacherous trip across the Mediterranean between January and May this year, with almost 2,000 losing their lives before arriving. In 2014, 600,000 migrants filed for asylum in the EU.