Brussels, 20/07/2004 (Agence Europe) - Debates on the future of justice and home affairs policy are focusing above all on how the Constitutional Treaty is being taken into account. Portugal, the United Kingdom, Denmark and Slovakia are explicitly opposed to it. The European Commission, on the other hand, insisted during the Council's debate on Monday on the need to take the guidelines of the Treaty into account. It is important to set political priorities as of now, mainly in order to foresee adequate financing in the financial perspectives, European Commissioner Antonio Vitorino said in Council. Several countries called for account to be taken of the constitutional treaty. Estonia was one such country, but also Luxembourg, which hopes the Council will be "very ambitious". Spain and Belgium insisted on the importance of creating a post of European Prosecutor, an idea that Slovakia described as "premature", and about which Denmark was "sceptical". Several countries, including Italy, spoke of the possibility for mid-term review of the programme, once the new Treaty is ratified by all.
"There are differences over asylum", the Presidency and the European Commission confirmed after Monday's Council. Although all agree that cooperation should be continued, Member States have different views on both the timetable and the aims. Many stressed the importance of strengthening the fight against terrorism and its sources of financing. Nearly all spoke of Europol and insisted on the need to strengthen it, whereas the Council is not even able to reach an agreement on appointing its director (yesterday's EUROPE, p.7). No delegation has given a specific stance against the idea, and so the Presidency has concluded there is broad consensus to strengthen information exchange between police forces and databases. The different countries mentioned some of their priorities. Spain suggested going further than the European arrest warrant to achieve immediate access to the justice of another country. Austria mentioned the question of carrying out prison sentences in another Member State. Spain insisted on the need for financial solidarity when it comes to border controls. Like the Presidency, Denmark hopes above all that the Member States will focus on the implementation of what has already been adopted. France stressed the need in some cases to harmonise legislation, only mutual recognition of decisions sometimes causing problems.
Nonetheless, during this first Council discussion on the future of justice and home affairs policy, Member States set out the broad lines of their position one after the other without a true debate. Commissioner Vitorino insisted on the importance of ending what remains to be done for the first Tampere programme adopted in 1999 to implement the decisions of the different European Councils, and to go forward toward more ambitious policies. The Presidency above all wants to implement what has already been decided, in cooperation with law practitioners. Discussions will enter the heart of the subject at the informal Council in the Hague on 30 September and 1 October, after which the Presidency will present draft conclusions, which will be the basis for guidelines to be adopted by the European, Council in November for the next 5 to 7 years.