9 Schengen Information System
| (a)
(27249)
5709/06
—
(b)
(27387)
5709/1/06
REV 1
—
(c)
(27442)
5709/3/06
REV 3
—
|
Draft Regulation on the establishment, operation and use of the second generation Schengen Information System (SIS II)
Redraft of the proposed Regulation
Revised draft of the Regulation
|
| Legal base | Articles 62(2)(a) and 66 EC; co-decision; QMV
|
| Deposited in Parliament | (b) 30 March 2006
(c) 27 April 2006
|
| Department | Home Office |
| Basis of consideration | (b) EM of 12 April 2006
(c) EM of 26 May 2006
|
| Previous Committee Report | (a) HC 34-xxii (2005-06), para 6 (15 March 2006)
(b) and (c) None
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| To be discussed in Council | No date set
|
| Committee's assessment | Politically important
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| Committee's decision | (a) and (b) Cleared
(c) Not cleared; further information requested
|
SIS I and II
9.1 The main aim of the Schengen Convention of 1990 was to abolish
checks at the borders between the signatory States while strengthening
control of the external borders of the Schengen area. In addition,
the Convention and subsequent measures contain provisions on police
and judicial co-operation for the detection and prosecution of
serious cross-border crime. The collective name for the Convention
and subsequent agreements is "the Schengen acquis".
The UK is not part of the Schengen area and does not participate
in the immigration and border control provisions of the acquis,
but it does participate in the provisions on police and judicial
co-operation.
9.2 The present Schengen Information System (SIS
I) dates from 1995. It contains information about, for example,
people wanted for arrest or extradition, third-country nationals
to be denied entry, missing persons, and stolen vehicles, firearms
and other property. It comprises a central database and national
databases. The system is capable of serving a maximum of 18 States.
9.3 In 2001, the Commission was given a mandate to
develop the second generation of the Schengen Information System
(SIS II).[32] The purpose
of SIS II is to enable up to 30 States to participate in the System
and to include biometric data in the information it holds. In
addition to the Member States, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland
will take part in SIS II, which is due to become operational in
2007.
Previous scrutiny
9.4 In July 2005, we considered the drafts of a Decision
on the police and judicial co-operation aspects of SIS II and
a draft Regulation on the immigration aspects.[33]
Separate measures are required because the legal bases for the
provisions on police and judicial co-operation are in the EU Treaty,
whereas the legal bases for the immigration provisions are in
the EC Treaty.
9.5 The UK is excluded from the proposed Regulation
because it does not take part in the immigration provisions of
the Schengen acquis. But it has an interest in the text
of the draft Regulation because it and the draft Decision have
common provisions on matters such as the purpose, scope, architecture,
management and security of SIS II. The draft Regulation also specifies
the conditions under which information may be entered on SIS II
about third-country nationals to be refused entry or stay in the
territory of the Member States and contains provisions about access
to the data and the retention, processing and protection of the
information.
Documents (a) and (b)
9.6 In March, we considered a major revision of the
proposed Regulation (document (a)).[34]
It has been superseded by a further revision of the text (documents
(b)), which has itself been overtaken by the latest draft (document
(c)).
Document (c)
9.7 The latest draft of the Regulation has been prepared
by the Austrian Presidency in the light of discussions in a Council
working group, other comments by Member States and proceedings
in a committee of the European Parliament. It incorporates a large
number of drafting amendments, but there are few differences of
substance between document (c) and document (a). Those few are
as follows:
- Management of the central
SIS II database: a Management
Authority would be responsible for the operational management
of the central SIS II database, keeping it functioning 24 hours
a day, seven days a week. As to the Communication Infrastructure,
the Management Authority would be responsible for supervision,
security and coordination of relations between the Member States
and the provider, while the Commission would be responsible for
work related to the budget, acquisition and renewal and contractual
matters. During the transitional period before the Management
Authority took over, the Commission would also be responsible
for the operational management of the central database but could
delegate the work to a national public sector body which satisfied
the criteria set out in the Article.
- Use of photographs and fingerprints:
Article 14C of document (c) specifies that, until 1 January 2009,
photographs and fingerprints contained in SIS II may be used only
to confirm the identity of a third-country national who has been
found on the database as a result of an alphanumeric search of
SIS II; from that date, they may also be used to identify a third-country
national "on the basis of his/her biometric identifier".
- Supervision of the processing of personal
data: Article 31 of document (c) gives
each Member State's data protection authority (its "national
supervisory authority") responsibility for checking that
the processing of SIS II personal data on and from its territory
is lawful. Article 31A provides for the European Data Protection
Supervisor to monitor the processing of personal data by the Management
Authority (or processing by the Commission or any body to which
it delegates its responsibilities during the transitional period).
Article 31B provides for the national supervisory authorities
and the European Data Protection Supervisor to exchange information,
help each other conduct audits and inspections, identify solutions
to shared problems and otherwise co-operate with each other.
The Government's view
9.8 The Minister of State at the Home Office (Mr
Tony McNulty) tells us that the Government is content with most
of the amendments incorporated in document (c). It is, however,
still considering what might be the most appropriate long-term
arrangements for the management of SIS II. It believes that Article
17 requires amendment to clarify the access (if any) that national
asylum authorities would have to SIS II. The Government is awaiting
the Information Commissioner's views on document (c).
Conclusion
9.9 Document (a) and (b) have been superseded
by document (c) and so we clear them from scrutiny.
9.10 We consider that most of the amendments incorporated
in document (c) improve the clarity of the text or introduce welcome
additional safeguards for fairness and the proper protection of
personal data.
9.11 In our view, the arrangements for the management
of the central SIS II system and for data protection are the key
issues. We ask the Minister to tell us the conclusions the Government
reaches about the management arrangements and to forward to us
the comments of the Information Commissioner on the data protection
provisions. Meanwhile, we shall keep document (c) under scrutiny.
32 Council Regulation (EC) No. 2424/2001, OJ No. L328,
13.12.2001, p.4; and Council Decision No. 2001/886/JHA, OJ No.
L328, 13.12.2001, p.1. Back
33
See (26638) 9942/05 and (26639) 9943/05: HC 34-iv (2005-06), para
14 (20 July 2005). Back
34
See headnote. Back
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