On Wednesday 24 October, the European Parliament approved the inter-institutional agreement on strengthening the Schengen Information System (SIS) through the creation of alerts on child abduction or linked to security, especially on return decisions taken against migrants in an irregular situation (see EUROPE 12044).
Among the new elements of this reform are the creation of alerts on unknown persons who are wanted in connection with serious crimes and terrorism, and the obligation for national authorities to share the details of a terrorist attack with all the member states.
The idea is not "to have more information" but "better information", one of the two rapporteurs, Carlos Coelho (EPP, Portugal), stated at a plenary debate the previous day. Coelho is involved with the section on the rules on border control. His report was adopted by 530 votes in favour, 50 against and 66 abstentions.
The European Parliament approved two other legislative texts: - the Coelho report on rules on police and judicial cooperation (555 votes in favour, 67 against and 20 abstentions); - the Lenars report on the rules on the return of third country nationals staying in the EU illegally (500 votes in favour, 103 against and 41 abstentions).
With this reform, the European criminal police agency (Europol) will also be able to have access to all the alerts in the SIS. The European Border and Coast Guard Agency (ex Frontex) will meanwhile be able to have access to the alerts linked to its missions.
Interoperability
The negotiators from the EU Council and European Parliament took part, on Wednesday 24 October, in the first inter-institutional negotiation session on the interoperability of European information systems (including SIS, VIS, Eurodac, ECRIS-TCN, ETIAS) on internal affairs.
This trialogue was mainly intended to present the respective positions of the two institutions co-legislating on this file (see EUROPE 12094, 12118). (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic).