Brussels, 16/07/2015(Agence Europe) - On Thursday 16 July, the members of the committee on civil liberties of the EP (LIBE) approved the compromise reached with the Council on 29 June on new rules governing the European Police College, CEPOL.
These new rules, which were approved by 47 votes in favour, seven against and five abstentions, aim to reinforce the joint training provided to representatives of the European police forces to respond to terrorist threats, cyber-crime and organised crime.
“The urgent nature and continual development of threats to security, such as terrorism and cyber-crime, and increasing demand related to migratory flows, mean that it is vital that the European law enforcement authorities have high-level training and are equipped with the most modern tools”, said the rapporteur, Kinga Gál (EPP, Hungary).
The MEPs also laid emphasis on the rules regarding the fundamental rights, calling for compliance with these to be an integral part of the College's mandate. They also want to see more transparency in the choice of management for the agency. At one point, the Barroso Commission suggested merging CEPOL with the agency Europol (European Police Office), but this was rejected both by the European agency for police cooperation and by the members of the European Parliament. (Solenn Paulic)