Activites

• 2002/07/18 Final act published in Official Journal
• #2436
• 2002/06/13 Council Meeting
• 2002/06/13 End of procedure in Parliament
• 2002/06/13 Act adopted by Council after consultation of Parliament
• 2002/02/06 Debate in Parliament
  • Debate in Parliament
  • T5-0044/2002 summary

    The European Parliament adopted the resolution by Graham WATSON (ELDR, UK) and adopted the Council's draft without amendment. (Please refer to the text dated 08/01/02).�

• 2002/01/08 Committee report tabled for plenary, reconsultation
  • A5-0003/2002
• 2002/01/08 Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
• 2001/12/12 Amended legislative proposal for reconsultation published
  • 14867/1/2001
  • DG [{'url': 'http://ec.europa.eu/justice/', 'title': 'Justice'}],
• 2001/12/12 Formal reconsultation of Parliament
• #2396
• 2001/12/06 Council Meeting
  • 2396 summary

    The Council examined, on the basis of a Presidency overall compromise proposal, the draft Framework Decision relating to the European arrest warrant. Following that examination, the Presidency was able to record the agreement of 14 delegations on its compromise. One delegation was unable to support the proposal. The main features of the compromise are as follows: - the arrest warrant is broad in scope. In particular, it gives rise to surrender in respect of 32 listed offences without verification of the double criminality of the act and provided that the offences are punishable in the issuing Member State by a custodial sentence of a maximum of at least 3 years. - a territoriality clause making it optional to execute an arrest warrant in respect of offences committed in the executing State or acts which took place in a third State but which are not recognised as offences by the executing State. - a retroactivity clause making it possible for a Member State to process requests submitted prior to the adoption of the Framework Decision under existing instruments relating to extradition.�

• 2001/11/29 Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
  • T5-0634/2001 summary

    The European Parliament adopted the report by Mr Graham WATSON (ELDR, UK) on the European arrest warrant and the surrender procedures between the Member States. (Please refer to the previous text).�

• #2385
• 2001/11/16 Council Meeting
  • 2385 summary

    The Council continued its discussions on the proposed Framework Decision concerning a European arrest warrant, focussing on the key issues still unresolved, namely the scope of the European arrest warrant and the judicial appeals process. At the close of the debate, the President noted that considerable progress had been made on both aspects and said that the convergence of views between delegations should enable the JHA Council meeting on 6 and 7 December 2001 to reach political agreement on the whole content of the Framework Decision in accordance with its instruction from the extraordinary meeting of the European Council on 21 September 2001, reiterated in Ghent on 19 October 2001. Regarding the scope of the arrest warrant, a very broad consensus emerged during the Ministers' deliberations - with continuing reservations at this stage from two delegations, spelt out in the discussion - on the list of offences giving rise to surrender of persons sought on the basis of a European arrest warrant under the terms to be defined in the Framework Decision (providing inter alia for surrender without verification of double criminality). This arrangement would apply to thirty different offences, the large majority of which feature in the Annex to the EUROPOL Convention. The Council will continue also to examine one delegation's suggestion that a benchmark for sentencing (proposal: four years) be incorporated in the arrangement to facilitate surrender without verification of double criminality for listed offences not yet harmonised. Regarding the appeals process, the Council noted broad consensus on the different execution of time limits applicable with regard to surrender. Moreover, the project provides for the possibility for the authorities of the issuing State to obtain, on arrest of the person sought, the possibility either of hearing his testimony in the State of execution or of obtaining his temporary transfer. Two delegations expressed scrutiny reservations on this point.�

• 2001/11/12 Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
  • A5-0397/2001
• 2001/10/04 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
• 2001/09/19 Legislative proposal published
  • COM(2001)0522 summary

    PURPOSE: to establish the rules under which a Member State shall execute in its territory a Euroepan arrest warrant issued by a judicial authority in another Member State. CONTENT: The Treaty of Amsterdam committed the European Union to the creation of an area in which freedom, justice and safety are deemed an inalienable right. The Tampere European Council in 1999 consolidated and strengthened this stance by stating that 'mutual recognition of judicial decisions and judgements should become the cornerstone of judicial cooperation in both civil and criminal matters'. In line with this thinking the European Commission has been preparing measures to harmonise extradition provisions. Recent events in America have given added urgency to this work. Currently, requests for extradition are dealt with through an ad hoc, dated, range of Protocols and Conventions. Their age combined with the fact that many have not been implemented into national law frequently renders them both obsolete and ineffective. It is against this backdrop that the Community is seeking to create a Community-wide framework Decision on an arrest warrant - applicable in all of the EU Member States. The underlying idea of the proposal is that where the judicial authority in one Member State asks for the surrender of a person sought for an offence incurring at least four months imprisonment, either having been convicted or still being prosecuted, the decision must be recognised and executed throughout the EU. To simplify and accelerate procedures as far as can be, a time-limit of three months is proposed. The principle of double criminal liability and the exception in favour of nationals are abolished. The proposal seeks to facilitate, wherever possible, the execution of the sentence in the country of arrest where that is where the person is most likely to be reintegrated into the society. On the other hand, this system addresses the European citizens' concerns for the protection of individual rights. Lastly, in issuing and execution of European arrest warrants, the national courts will of course remain subject to the general norms relating to the protection of fundamental rights, and particularly the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of 1950 and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. �

  • DG [{'url': 'http://ec.europa.eu/justice/', 'title': 'Justice'}],

Documents

• Legislative proposal published: COM(2001)0522
• Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading: A5-0397/2001
• Debate in Council: 2385
• Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T5-0634/2001
• Debate in Council: 2396
• Amended legislative proposal for reconsultation published: 14867/1/2001
• Committee report tabled for plenary, reconsultation: A5-0003/2002
• Debate in Parliament: Debate in Parliament
• Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T5-0044/2002

History

(these mark the time of scraping, not the official date of the change)