Latest News

Latest

• UKIP unveils another Mayor!
• Fight for the right to be insulting!
• Marta on The Record Europe
• Laughter at our expense
• When a wine is not a wine
• London Assembly Results
• Latest Super Constituency results
• Sanjay's first Sovereign Draw winner!
• Legal query on minimum pricing

Batten slams EU civil liberties rulings

Tuesday, 25th May 2010

UKIP has demanded the coalition government come clean on its civil liberties agenda after EU documents revealed data-sharing among EU member states will become more widespread.

Provisions contained in the little-known Treaty of Prüm open the door for European governments to automatically search EU-wide DNA profiles, fingerprint data and vehicle registration data. A document dated April 27 says member states will have to comply with the provisions by August 26, 2011.

UKIP justice spokesman Gerard Batten welcomes the UK coalition government’s pledge to scrap civil liberties infringements such as ID cards and restrictions on non-violent protests, but explains that such pledges are worthless while the government remains supportive of the snooping EU.

“While we are delighted that some of the authoritarian measures created by Labour are to be dismantled, it appears that this government is only prepared to protect British citizens from Whitehall, but not from Brussels,” Mr Batten said.

The London MEP says the Treaty of Prüm regulations draw fresh attention to other EU civil liberties scandals, particularly the European Arrest Warrant.

“It is not only in data and DNA sharing that we see risk to British civil liberties,” Mr Batten explained. “There has been great play about the situation of the hacker Gary McKinnon and whether he should be sent to America to face trial, but nothing about the spectre of various UK citizens being sent to countries like Greece and Bulgaria in similar circumstances under the European Arrest Warrant.”

“It is about time that this government looked at the issues of civil liberties in the round, not with a myopic view based solely on London. This is a golden opportunity to repeal the European Arrest Warrant, and one not to be wasted.”

View the European Council document that opens the door for EU-wide data sharing

Back to Latest News