The Commission welcomes the publication of the first set of results of the survey made by the Fundamental Rights Agency on the experiences of immigrants and minorities with racist crime and discrimination, which it will study carefully.

It is concerned however that results show that discrimination, racism and xenophobia are still persistent phenomena in the EU, that they affect the lives of members of ethnic minorities in the EU and of immigrants, and that they can hamper their integration into our societies. 

The Commission has repeatedly condemned any manifestation of racism and xenophobia. These phenomena are incompatible with the values that the European Union is based upon. The results of this survey reaffirm the need for the European Union and its Member States, each within their respective sphere of competence, to strengthen their common fight against discrimination, racism and xenophobia. 

The Survey also shows the negative impact of the current levels of underreporting of racist crime and of discrimination experiences, together with lack of awareness about rights. The Commission will ensure that EU funding is used to raise awareness on these issues.

The survey also provides clear and recent data on the perception by members of minorities of ethnic profiling in the EU in the context of counter-terrorism activities, law enforcement, immigration policies, customs and border control. The Commission will study carefully those data. Unjustified or unnecessary ethnic profiling is prohibited and it is contrary to the fundamental values of the EU.

There is currently a debate on whether there is a need to collect and process statistical data to have a better understanding of the situation of the members of minorities in the EU. These data can be useful to improve the design of policies targeting specific needs. Therefore, Vice President Barrot is looking into the possibility to ask the Article 29 Data Protection Working Party to prepare an opinion on processing of personal data for statistical purposes including ethnicity, race or origin.