16/09/2011 (Agence Europe) - Policy communication on criminal law. On Tuesday 20 September, the European Commission will adopt a communication on the way criminal law can be used in a coherent manner to strengthen the enforcement of EU policies and rules. This is the first time that the Commission has defined a framework and guidelines for application of EU criminal law in order to protect the interests of EU citizens. Criminal law can help to ensure that EU-wide rules in important policy areas are respected. These include protecting the environment, preventing manipulation of financial markets such as insider trading, or safeguarding taxpayers' money from fraud against the EU budget.