Brussels, 21/01/2015 (Agence Europe) - A new security agenda for May of this year and, if necessary, an amended proposal on the European PNR project should the European parliament and the Council be unable to continue their discussions on the basis of the current proposal which dates from February 2011. This additional information was provided by European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans on Wednesday 21 January at the first general discussion of the College of Commissioners on EU's response to the terrorist threat.
Two weeks after the Paris terrorist attacks which resulted in the deaths of 17 people, the Commission line was particularly keenly awaited on the issue of the PNR - a file containing the personal data of European air travellers which home affairs ministers want to resurrect but which the Parliament is continuing to discuss since the proposal was rejected by the civil liberties committee in April 2013. The European Commission said that it would try to facilitate discussions between the Council and Parliament to enable a swift decision. However, if it had to acknowledge that the discussions had failed between now and May, it would be prepared to amend its 2011 text.
Timmermans' comments were quickly picked up by MEPs keen to get to work on the new PNR proposal. Former commissioner Viviane Reding tweeted her pleasure that Timmermans was ready to bring forward a new proposal on the PNR.
“It's not so. It's understandable that some MEPs want to put on a bit of pressure in the hope that they will get changes to or the withdrawal of the 2011 text”, said a source, “but, for the moment, the Commission has no intention of withdrawing it. It's leaving the Parliament and the Council to assess whether they can make progress on the current basis and, if they can't, we'll see if we will have to present an amended proposal”. “What would be quickest would be to go forward with the same text, which the Parliament can of course, amend. An amended proposal would necessarily take longer”, observed a second source. On 3 December, the European commissioner responsible, Dimitris Avramopoulos, himself called on the Parliament to bring improvements to the 2011 proposal and suggested a series of amendments to MEPs.
On personal data protection, the reform of European rules on which has been on-going since 2012, Timmermans also called on the Parliament and Council to make progress, though without seeming to link the issues, while some in the Parliament, including the ALDE Group, have made their support for the European PNR conditional on adoption by the Council of reform of the 1995 rules.
In general terms, Timmermans recalled the respective responsibilities and powers of the Commission and the member states and made clear that security remained principally a matter of national responsibility but “as soon as the Commission can help, it will do so”. Taking the view that the discussions on how powers be shared between the EU and the member states were of little value, he also spoke of strengthening the external borders of the Schengen area, as the member states wish, calling for more systematic controls on European nationals at the external borders. “But we have seen in recent discussions that Schengen is part of the solution and not part of the problem”, insisted Timmermans, closing the door firmly on any changes to freedom of movement in the Schengen area.
Otherwise, with EU responsibilities restricted, Timmermans gave assurances that the Commission would support the member states in their consideration on integrating all communities in European societies and on how they prevent radicalisation. The internal security agenda is likely, however, to focus on other priorities, including trafficking and the trade in illegal weapons and enhancing cooperation between Europol and the other European agencies, such as INTCEN, an EEAS body charged with assessing threats;
The Parliament's civil liberties committee, with the Latvian Presidency in attendance, set out on Wednesday morning how it intended to work on the response to terrorism. Committee chairman, Claude Moraes (S&D, UK) confirmed that an expert meeting on PNR would take place on 4 February, as rapporteur Timothy Kirkhope (ECR, UK) had said. It will then fall to Kirkhope to present, if he can, a timetable for the resumption of discussions in the civil liberties committee.
French Home Affairs Minister Bernard Cazeneuve could meet the committee coordinators at the start of February. Commissioner Avramopoulos, along with EU anti-terrorism coordinator Gilles de Kerchove, will be called on to brief MEPs on de-redicalisation. At the start of the meeting, Moraes gave his view that it is of the greatest importance not to rush into proposing new instruments and he called rather for a counter-terrorism and counter-radicalisation road map ahead of the 12 February summit, to analyse the problems and weaknesses at all levels, European, national and local. (SP)