Frontières, asile, migration

Preliminary comments on three Communications from the Commission on border management (COM (2008) 69, COM (2008)68 and COM (2008)67)

Avis sur l'initiative de 15 Etats membres en vue de l'adoption de la décision du Conseil relative à l'approfondissement de la coopération transfrontière, notamment en vue de lutter contre le terrorisme et la criminalité transfrontière, JO C 169, 21.07.2007, p. 2

The EDPS presented his opinion on the initiative of 15 Member States to make the Treaty of Prüm applicable throughout the EU. The initiative aims to step up cross-border cooperation, particularly for combating terrorism and cross-border crime. The initiative deals with the exchange of biometric data (DNA and fingerprints) and requires member states to set up DNA databases.

Although data protection plays an important role in this Treaty, the provisions on data protection in this initiative are meant as specific ones, on top of a general framework for data protection, which has still not been adopted. Such a framework is needed to give the citizen enough protection, since this decision will make it much easier to exchange DNA and fingerprint data.

Since the Prüm Treaty has already entered into force in three member states, the 15 Member States that took the initiative intend to limit substantial modifications.. Therefore, the EDPS' suggestions mainly serve to improve the text without modifying the system of information exchange itself.