Brussels, 02/02/2009 (Agence Europe) - The plans to set in place a European airline passenger data collection system or PNR (Passenger Name Record), which was presented in November 2007 and still under discussion at Council of Ministers of the EU, is still raising a great many questions regarding its added value, whether or not it is in line with European legal standards and, above all, regarding data protection issues, as attested by a study published in January by Evelien Brouwer, a researcher at the University of Utrecht. This study, which was commissioned by the committee on civil liberties (Libe) of the European Parliament, first of all takes account of the various comments of organisations and institutions to examine efficiency and added value of the proposal as it stands. The second part of the study looks into the legal implications of the European PNR system, particularly the impact of data protection, the law on privacy, anti-discrimination and profiling. The third part of the study presents a number of final comments and recommendations. The study is available at: http: //http://www.europarl.europa.eu/activities/committees/studies/download.do?file=24151 . The European PNR would require airlines to transmit information about their passengers 24 hours before boarding, as a measure to fight terrorism and crime. As things stand, the reflection carried out under the French Presidency led to a provision for the obligatory storage of data for around three years, with the possibility of extending this to seven years. The total duration of storage would be between six and ten years. Sensitive information (on racial and ethnic origin, political opinions, health or sexuality) will be removed or made unavailable. However, if these sensitive data could help to resolve an enquiry or exonerate somebody from suspicion, there would have to be a clear framework for their use. (B.C./trans.fl)