Prüm: an effective weapon against
terrorism and crime?
CHAPTER 1: Introduction
1. In principle, any EU initiative to improve
cooperation between the Member States in the fight against terrorism
and other serious cross-border crime is to be welcomed. The subject
of this report, the Prüm Treaty, is an initiative of only
a few Member States to enhance cooperation between themselves.[1]
It may be ideal for them and, although the EU Commission were
not consulted at all in its drafting, it is perfectly in order
for those Member States to wish to have their agreement adopted
by the EU as a whole. However the other Member States, the Commission,
and appropriate bodies such as the European Data Protection Supervisor
should be entitled to have a say in the classes of information
which are to be exchanged, the procedures for exchanging them
and the safeguards which will apply. Furthermore, an Explanatory
Memorandum and assessment of costs should have been submitted
beforehand for all to consider, just as the Commission do when
they propose legislation. In its haste to agree a Decision based
on the Prüm Treaty during its Presidency, Germany has markedly
failed to produce these or to consult fully.
2. What is remarkable is how little any of the
other Member States appear to have questioned what they are being
asked to agree. The purpose of our inquiry has been to see whether
the Government are right to accept these radical proposals almost
without question.
3. We requested a number of persons and bodies
whose views we knew would be especially significant to supply
us with written evidence, and we asked some of these for oral
evidence. Their evidence is printed with this report. We are most
grateful to all those who have helped us in this way.
4. The German Presidency has been the main moving
force, and we would have welcomed an opportunity to hear their
views on aspects of the inquiry. Unfortunately, apart from a written
answer to a question put by the Select Committee to the German
Ambassador in a separate evidence session,[2]
the Presidency declined to give evidence to the Committee. We
put on record our regret that the German Presidency should have
been unwilling to discuss with the Committee of a national Parliament
an initiative to which we, like them, attach great importance.
5. We recommend this report to the House for
debate.
1 See paragraph 21 below for "enhanced cooperation"
in the sense in which this expression is used in the Treaty on
European Union. Back
2
Evidence from the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany
on the German Presidency, 10th Report, Session 2006-07, HL
Paper 56, page 6. Back
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