The European Union (EU) is to establish a permanent policy which will see the bloc invite “refugees” to legally settle in the continent year on year.

The common EU Resettlement Framework aims to offer safe, legal routes for people deemed “in need of protection”. The European Commission hopes that this will deter migrants from paying people smugglers to transport them to Europe.

The Commission’s Vice-President, Frans Timmermans, said: “We need to move up a gear in our common efforts to provide international protection, and that includes resettling refugees in Europe in a safe and orderly way.”

Dimitris Avramopoulos, Commissioner for Migration, said: “Today’s proposal is a major step in our efforts to offer legal avenues to allow persons in need to enter the EU safely and receive protection.

“It is an integral part of the larger objective of ensuring that protection is offered to those who need it, reducing the incentives for irregular migration and protecting migrants from exploitation by smuggling networks and dangerous journeys to reach Europe.”

Also contained in the framework is how the unelected European Commission, which wields most of the power in the EU, plans to relocate migrants already on the continent.

According to the Commission’s press release, the EU will give countries €10,000 for each migrant they agree to take from other member states who are struggling with huge numbers of arrivals.

Well over a million people migrated to Europe in 2015, mainly by sea. Last September, the EU promised to take some pressure off Italy and Greece, which are on the frontline of the crisis.

By May this year, EU officials had hoped to have moved 160,000 migrants from those countries to other European nations. So far, only 3,056 have been rehoused elsewhere in Europe.

In May the Commission announced they intended to fine countries €250,000 per migrant allocated that they refuse. Whilst the new framework contains this sweetener of extra EU cash for countries which accept migrants, there is no mention of punishment for states which refuse to comply.

Mr. Avramopoulos confirmed, however, that penalties will still be on the table: “We’re not here to punish, we are here to persuade.

“But if this persuasion doesn’t succeed, then yes, we’re thinking of doing that. But we’re not there yet.”

While the EU’s proposal notes that the UK is not obligated to take part in the scheme, Britain will still be hit with a hefty bill until they are able to leave the European Union. This is because the €10,000 bonus to countries rehousing migrants will be drawn from the overall EU budget.

Last month Breitbart London reported that the Commission unveiled plans to hugely increase skilled legal migration from Africa. Among the proposals was a revamped “Blue Card” scheme which it hopes will make Europe “more attractive” to people from the world’s poorest continent.