A/HRC/29/36 irregular migration across different member States. Against a backdrop of fiscal and demographic challenges in many countries and political discourses of austerity, discussing external migration as a “burden” again legitimizes the further securing of borders and encourages negative public attitudes. While society undoubtedly has a responsibility towards migrants and more solidarity in sharing this responsibility is encouraged, migration in itself is not and should not be presented as a burden. Much economic literature suggests that, as workers, consumers and taxpayers, migrants contribute to the economic growth of societies with very limited downsides. In fact, the perceived burden of migration comes predominantly from the financial, technological and human resources necessary to implement the European Union’s counterproductive security-focused policies and deal with their unintended (although foreseeable) secondary effects. Acknowledging that migrants are human beings with rights, the European Union and its member States should be talking about sharing a responsibility, not a burden. 75. The normative basis for more positive, realistic views of migrants sits within an abundance of fact-based analysis, as well as the European Union’s founding values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and human rights for all, as evidenced in the robust human rights regime and the international human rights instruments that member States have ratified. Banking on mobility over a generation 76. Applying the European Union’s core values to policies that are based on fact rather than fiction leads to migration policies that facilitate mobility and celebrate diversity. The long-term development of the human rights-based framework discussed above will become increasingly vital to the Union’s internal and external interests. Over the next 25 years, Europe will undergo large-scale demographic, societal and labour market changes. 77. By 2025, more than 20 per cent of European Union citizens will be over 65 years of age, with a particular increase in those over 85. The population of elderly people will almost double, from 87.5 million in 2010 to 152.6 million in 2060. It is also expected that the share of those aged 80 and over will rise from 5 to 12 per cent.5 At the same time, many member States have fertility rates below the rate of replacement. An average fertility rate of 2.1 children per woman is estimated to be necessary to keep the population at a stable size between generations in developed countries. United Nations population data suggests that between 2010 and 2015 all European Union countries will have had average fertility rates below the 2.1 mark with the regional average being 1.6. 78. In line with these demographic changes, the European work force is declining. In 2010, for the first time, more workers were retiring from the European labour market than were joining it. The European Union and OECD are predicting that, with a zero net increase in migration, the working age population will drop by 3.5 per cent by 2020. Over the next 50 years, the working-age population is expected to decline by nearly 42 million.6 79. These changes have the potential to exacerbate and widen existing skills gaps within the European Union. Of the companies that responded to the 2013 European Company Survey, 40 per cent stated that, despite high unemployment levels, they found it difficult to find applicants with the correct skills set. The demographic shifts discussed above are going to add pressure and impetus to the need to ensure balance between labour supply and demand. According to both the European Union and OECD, for the European Union to 5 6 European Commission, Population Ageing in Europe, Facts, Implications and Policies (2014). Ibid. See also OECD and European Union, “Migration Policy Briefing” (2014). 15