New rules on data
transfers for policing and judicial purposes, informally agreed on Tuesday and
backed by Civil Liberties Committee MEPs on Thursday morning, will set high
standards of data protection to protect citizens' rights and freedoms. They
should also enable police forces across Europe to work together faster and more
efficiently to counter serious crime and terrorism.
The
committee approved the new rules by 53 votes to 2, with 1 abstention.
"This
is an historic agreement, since it is the first time we have fully harmonised
rules covering police and criminal justice authorities on data protection in
the EU. These rules, applying to cooperation between EU member states and with
third countries on transferring and processing of data, should facilitate
the sharing of information, while at the same time ensuring that European
citizens’ fundamental rights are not violated", said Parliament's lead MEP
on the directive, Marju Lauristin (S&D, EE).
"How
police and criminal authorities use personal data can affect our lives to a
great extent. It, thus, has to be done correctly and under appropriate legal
framework", she added.
The draft
directive on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of
personal data for the purposes of prevention, investigation, detection or
prosecution of criminal offences will be the first instrument to
comprehensively harmonise 28 different law enforcement systems with
respect to data processing for law enforcement purposes as well as
set minimum standards for data processing for policing purposes within each
member state. EU countries may set higher standards than those enshrined
in the directive if they so wish.
The draft
directive also complements the agreements reached previously this month on
Europol. Together they ensure a robust and harmonised level of data protection
in the entire European law enforcement sector. ,
The rules
should thus clarify police cooperation arrangements at all administrative
levels and give citizens greater certainty as to the law. The safeguards
will apply to everyone, whether victim, criminal or witness. the
directive will set out clear rights for individuals and establish an independent
supervisory authority with enforcement powers.
During
the three-way-talks between Parliament, Council and Commission, Parliament's
negotiators insisted on the mandatory presence of a Data Protection Officer to
monitor all data transfers as well as a prior assessment being carried out in
cases where data processing is likely to entail high risk for a person’s rights
and freedoms.
Next steps
The deal
will now be put to a vote by Parliament as whole in spring 2016 (probably in
March or April), after which member states will have two years to transpose the
provisions of the new directive into their national laws.
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