Schengen and border checks: MEPs and guest speakers discuss current developments and future perspectives

When: Wednesday 19 February 2025, 14.30 to 16.30 CET Where: European Parliament in Brussels, the Antall building, room 4Q1 The joint public hearing, based on petitions from Slovenia and Germany, starts off with a historical account of the development of the Schengen free-travel area and a presentation of its current legal framework, the Schengen Borders Code. In the following section, MEPs and guest speakers will assess the current situation of the area, including reintroduced border controls. The hearing, chaired by PETI Chair Mr Bogdan Rzońca and LIBE Vice-Chair Ms Marina Kaljurand, will conclude with remarks by Ms Lena Düpont, Chair of the Parliament’s Schengen and Borders Scrutiny Working Group. Panel 1: Background and development of the Schengen area, with: - Ms Kapka Georgieva-Atanasova, Professor at the Faculty of Law “St. Kliment Ohridski”, Sofia University; and - Ms Denise Kwantes, Schengen and External Borders Unit, DG HOME, European Commission Panel 2: Implementation of the new measures and instruments, with: - Mr Sergio Carrera, Senior Research Fellow and Head of Justice and Home Affairs unit in the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS); and - Mr Olivier Onidi, Schengen Coordinator, European Commission. You can follow the hearing (livestream and video-on-demand) here.