Brussels, 26/01/2011 (Agence Europe) - On the morning of Wednesday 26 January, MEPs on the European Parliament justice, civil liberties and home affairs committee (LIBE) held an exchange of views on the draft own initiative report by Sophie In't Veld (ALDE, Netherlands) on assessing EU counter-terrorism policies in the EU and highlighted the importance of ensuring their effectiveness before agreeing new measures. In the course of their discussions, the MEPs raised the issues of the ban on carrying liquids onto aeroplanes, which has been extended in the EU because of the dearth of effective alternatives, the legitimacy of the PNR (Passenger Name Record) programme negotiated between the EU, the United States, Canada and Australia, and , more generally, respect for individual liberties and data protection, with some MEPs warning against widespread profiling of citizens and advocating profiling only when justified by a criminal investigation. For In't Veld, and this is the aim of her report, the policies put in place by member states have to be evaluated, and in her report she calls on the Commission to draw up a full list of the counter-terrorism measures in place in all member states and to draft “objective parameters” for assessing their relevance and effectiveness. These evaluations must also seek to enhance “democratic control” of the counter-terrorism policies and ensure that “they are not being used for other ends”. It is only on that condition, she argued, that new measures should be proposed because, at present, “we still don't know if security in the EU is better than 10 years ago”, she said on Tuesday. She is also calling on the Commission to evaluate the cost of the counter-terrorism measures in all member states and to provide a detailed report on the European funds being used for counter-terrorism purposes. (S.P./transl.rt)