Tomorrow the European Parliament will vote on the directive laying down conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals for the purposes of highly qualified employment. The proposal aims to improve Europe's ability to attract third-country highly qualified workers in order to boost the competitiveness of the EU economy.

Unfortunately, the EPP and PSE groups are lining up with Council introducing a set of amendments introducing much red tape making it very difficult for highly qualified workers to work in the European Union. ALDE fears a majority of the EP will support this protectionist reflex.

"All's not well that starts well. What began as pioneering legislation to address legal migration at the EU level ended up a messy, mediocre compromise. A Blue Card wrapped in red tape is hardly a welcome gift. Europe can do better than this," said ALDE Leader Graham Watson (Lib Dem, UK).

Jeanine Hennis Plasschaert (VVD, Netherlands), ALDE spokesperson on immigration: "Now we finally have the chance to give a strong message on the necessity of clearly opening up efficient possibilities for legal migration, to address the demand of businesses who are in urgent need of qualified workers, but a majority of this house will fail to do so. The current trend is that the vast majority of highly qualified workers emigrates to the US, Canada or Australia instead of the EU. If we want to reverse this trend, we have to be ambitious. Political courage is needed. If the EPP and PSE continue to apply their current approach, I take a gloomy view of the future. Europe's forward looking strategy on legal migration will vanish into thin air."

Chairman of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, Gérard Deprez (MR, Belgium) said: "The Blue Card will increase the competitiveness of the EU economy. Europe will have to attract more qualified workers to Europe's labour market. The Blue Card is a first step in making Europe more attractive for non-EU citizens with ambition and skills."

The blue card would introduce a special procedure for the entry of non-EU citizens to work in the European Union. Inspired by the US Green Card it aims to have a common procedure for the whole of the EU.Card it aims to have a common procedure for the whole of the EU.