Tag: justice and home affairs

José Manuel Barroso’s congratulatory message following the recent parliamentary election in Romania carries two important messages: it tells President Traian Băsescu that he should re-appoint Victor Ponta as prime minister, and warns Ponta he should work with Băsescu instead of reviving efforts to impeach him.

The UK's intended opt-out from EU cooperation on police and criminal matters will be the “elephant in the room” at the two-day meeting of EU justice and home affairs ministers beginning today (25 October), diplomats told EurActiv.

MEPs applauded a motion approving Croatia's EU membership on 1 July 2013, after passing it yesterday (1 December) by a large majority in the European Parliament. EU heads of states are expected to sign the Accession Treaty at next week's summit in Brussels.

The European Commission will propose today (18 May) a package of measures aimed at boosting the protection of the 30 million citizens who every year fall victims of crime in the European Union.

After rejecting an earlier version in February, the European Parliament approved a revised EU-US bank-data sharing deal yesterday (8 July), asserting its new-found role in the EU's institutional power game under the Lisbon Treaty.

Bulgaria and Romania have both moved closer to Schengen area as the European Commission today (14 June) marks the 25^th anniversary of the Schengen Agreement, providing for the gradual abolition of frontier checks at their common borders with other EU countries.

MEPs today (21 January) clashed with EU ministers, calling for a delay to the entry into force of the so-called SWIFT agreement, a EU-US deal maintaining the transfer of EU citizens' banking data to US investigators.

Reinforcing citizens' rights will be a top priority in the coming years, said Viviane Reding, the EU's commissioner-designate for justice, fundamental rights and citizenship, at a parliamentary hearing yesterday (12 January), voicing her opposition to body scanners at airports.

The Swedish EU Presidency's proposals for a new justice and home affairs agenda, adopted by European heads of state and government at their meeting in Brussels last week (10-11 December), should lead to much-needed action in areas such as immigration and asylum, experts told EurActiv.

People in Europe facing criminal proceedings outside of their country of residence will be able to receive free interpretation and translations of procedural documents in their native language, justice ministers agreed last week (23 October).

MEPs last week (8 October) debated the Swedish EU Presidency's proposed new programme for freedom, security and justice in the EU. The plans, which are in line with Sweden's progressive national policies, were welcomed by liberal MEPs but described as weak on immigration by southern Europeans.

The renewal of the EU's justice and home affairs priorities will be a key challenge for the forthcoming Swedish EU Presidency. But despite the country's legislative credentials, Sweden's 'Stockholm Programme' is likely to fall short of its ambitions, sources told EurActiv.

France is expected to achieve the first success of its EU Presidency by officially presenting a 'European Pact on Immigration and Asylum' at informal talks between justice and home affairs ministers on 7-8 July in Cannes. The text, seen by EurActiv, has been watered down to accommodate concerns from Spain, which advocates a more open immigration policy.

Commission Vice President Jacques Barrot and Transport Commissioner-designate Antonio Tajani each faced three hours of questioning in separate hearings in the European Parliament on June 16. Tajani had to face the most difficult questions, in particular regarding the Alitalia state aid case.

European leaders should be more energetic in warning the Italian Government about hate rhetoric against immigrants, says Romanian Socialist MEP Adrian Severin in an interview with EurActiv.

Bulgaria is scaling up its fight against corruption and organised crime with the first sentences now effective, Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ivaylo Kalfin told EurActiv in an interview, also highlighting his country's difficulties in communicating a more positive image of itself.

The field of Justice and Home Affairs is among those most "fundamentally changed" by the Reform Treaty, write Sergio Carrera and Florian Geyer in a 17 August 2007 paper for the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS).

Parliament has suspended President Basescu for abuse of power in an ongoing row with rival Prime Minister Calin Popescu-Tariceanu, casting doubt on the country's ability to meet crucial European requirements on judicial matters and EU-money 'absorption' capacities.

The Commission wants to remove national vetoes on security and justice measures and to upgrade the EU Court of Justice's powers to decide on questions of asylum and immigration.

Since 1 March, all member state EU courts ruling on child abduction cases have six weeks to order the return of children to their families in their EU country of origin.

At an informal meeting in Luxembourg, European justice ministers expressed concerns over the cost and data protection implications of a proposed  “European index system” of criminal convictions.

Meeting for an informal Council in the Netherland on 30 September - 1 October, EU Justice and Interior Ministers will decide what will be on their plates for the coming years. Setting up asylum camps in Africa, along with other proposals to curb asylum, will top the agenda.

This report argues that Europe must tackle root causes of terrorism actively. It examines the path to ensure the security of the Union against terrorism while guaranteeing the rights and civil liberties of Europe's law-abiding Muslim population.

John Palmer, Political Director of the European Policy Centre, analyses the outcome of the meeting of the Spring European Council 2004.