Minister Rajamäki: Hearing at the LIBE Committee

Distinguished members of the LIBE Committee of the European Parliament,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Let me begin by saying how delighted I am to have this opportunity today to present you with Finland’s priorities for Justice and Home Affairs. What makes this task especially agreeable is my 23 years of work in the Finnish Parliament, during which I have stressed the role of Parliament in addressing issues concerning budgetary authority and representative democracy. I am proud to be wearing on my breast today the emblem of the Finnish Parliament, which, in fact, is celebrating a special anniversary this year. A hundred years ago, in 1906, the Finnish Parliament became the first modern representative institution in the world; this meant that all Finns, both men and women, were given equal and universal suffrage and the right to stand for election irrespective of their financial status. This was a big step for a small country such as Finland which has helped our country to remain a representative democracy during the years of war and danger.

The European Parliament has justly become an increasingly important actor in Justice and Home Affairs cooperation. Finland has also supported this development in the negotiations on amending the existing Treaties. I want to follow in the footsteps of previous Presidents of the Justice and Home Affairs Council by continuing to cooperate actively with members of the European Parliament. This cooperation proved to be efficient last autumn when discussing the Directive on data retention. I would like to express my gratitude for the outcome of these discussions which reflects the political, financial and legal aspects highlighted by Finland, among others. When the interinstitutional cooperation works well, it helps to increase the security of all EU citizens.

In the past decade, Justice and Home Affairs have played a key role in cooperation within the European Union. From the law enforcement point of view, implementing the principle of free movement of persons, which is a core principle of the Union, has changed the situation in Member States – even more than anticipated. International cooperation between law enforcement authorities has already increased and developed, thanks to cooperation between the Member States. In most cases, authorities still do not have sufficient tools for cooperating effectively with other EU Member States. Or if such tools exist, authorities do not necessarily know how to exploit their full potential.

We should draw attention to the impact that EU enlargement has on the security of citizens. In this respect, the EU’s approval rating in the eyes of its citizens depends on the extent to which the Union appears to be strengthening their personal security.

As I see it, as the country holding the EU Presidency, Finland has an important legacy to take forward. Since the adoption of the Treaty of Amsterdam, the European Union has developed an area of freedom, security and justice in order to respond to new challenges.
The Tampere Summit, held during Finland’s previous Presidency in 1999, provided the greatest impetus for the content of Justice and Home Affairs policy. The Tampere Programme was recently continued by the Hague Programme, which was adopted by the European Council in November 2004.

During its Presidency, Finland will do its best to take forward the Hague Programme, and the related Action Plan of June 2005. A key priority for Finland’s Presidency is the review of the Hague Programme. The objective is to lay down political guidelines on the main issues relating to the area of freedom, security and justice. The Finnish Presidency strives to find ways of reinforcing Justice and Home Affairs cooperation in the spirit of Tampere.

Strengthening decision-making in police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters – which can be achieved by making full use of the possibilities offered by the Treaty on European Union – will be of crucial importance in safeguarding the security in the citizens' daily life. By this I mean that it should be explored how the passerelle clause laid down in Article 42 of the EU Treaty can be applied. The use of the passerelle clause would significantly promote an efficient, understandable and democratic way of addressing Justice and Home Affairs. Europe needs to be viable in order to combat new serious phenomena, such as trafficking in human beings.

We also want to give renewed impetus to the development of a common European asylum system and a common integrated management system for the Union’s external borders. In addition, the Presidency aims to create a basis for a more comprehensive evaluation system for Justice and Home Affairs in connection with the review of the Hague Programme so as to enable the implementation of our common decisions in all Member States.

According to the Hague Programme, the common European asylum system should be finalised in 2010. The Commission will present a Green Paper on the matter in spring 2007, and the Finnish Presidency will aim to open discussion on how to develop the common asylum system following the adoption of first-phase legal instruments. We should also try to ensure that the minimum rules are turned into genuinely common rules and that the asylum rules are broadened out to include other forms of international protection. At the same time, practical cooperation between the Member States’ asylum authorities should be further developed.

During its Presidency, Finland will also seek to launch broader discussion at political level on wider European solidarity in immigration, asylum and border control issues. Although European solidarity is not a matter to be addressed during Finland's EU Presidency, long-term challenges and the principles guiding EU funding deserve to be discussed. Central topics relating to European solidarity include providing international protection to those entitled to it, particularly by applying in full the Geneva Convention; ensuring a more concrete financial burden sharing in issues concerning illegal immigration, asylum and border control; and complying with the commonly agreed rules in a verifiable manner.

During the Finnish Presidency, we will address immigration issues comprehensively, taking account of connections between illegal immigration and trafficking in human beings, for example. The Commission will issue a communication on illegal immigration. Finland’s aim is for the Council to adopt conclusions providing guidelines for future work around this issue. During its Presidency, Finland will actively strive to resolve the outstanding issues related to the Directive on return and to achieve political agreement on the Directive at the Council as soon as possible.

We have stressed the importance of the EU action plan on combating trafficking in human beings, with special emphasis on a human rights-based and victim-centred approach and the development of operational cooperation. Trafficking in human beings is the most disgusting form of organised crime, and combating this crime will require our continuous efforts. A few years ago, we in Finland did not fully recognise the seriousness of human trafficking but had a naive view of this problem. Now, having woken up to the reality, we have taken action, and the results are beginning to show. In Finland, I have particularly stressed the importance of intensifying operational cooperation among authorities in order to secure field-level authorities’ readiness to intervene in human trafficking. From Finland’s point of view, transit traffic poses a serious challenge, particularly owing to a vast amount of air traffic from Asia transiting through Helsinki Airport. At the end of June, we therefore set up a working group consisting of the Nordic countries, with the aim of strengthening the cooperation regarding the disappearances of minor Chinese asylum seekers. Finland will host a seminar on identifying child victims in Helsinki at the end of October or beginning of November.

In border security, Finland will aim to get political, strategic-level guidelines adopted committing the Member States to more effective control of the EU’s external borders. This will mean channelling national resources and funding to the right places. Frontex, the external borders agency, will be given political guidelines and support.

In the field of visa policy, work will focus on further development of the common visa policy in accordance with the Hague Programme. Our main priorities include ensuring that the common Visa Information System (VIS) may be implemented within the scheduled time frame. As part of the implementation work, preparations will be undertaken for the introduction of biometric identifiers in visas. In order to make the use of biometric identifiers possible, Finland will aim to finalise the revision of the Common Consular Instructions, which also include regulations on the cooperation between Member States in the visa application procedure. During its Presidency, Finland will also launch the work on a Community Code on visas. We will continue the preparation work on visa facilitation agreements according to the agreed common approach, concentrating particularly on countries with a confirmed status as potential EU membership candidates (the so called ‘European perspective’).

Preparations for extending the Schengen area are an important issue to be taken forward during the Finnish Presidency. Following the evaluations to be conducted in the new Member States, Finland’s aim is for the Council to adopt political conclusions in December evaluating the situation and, where necessary, specifying what measures have still to be taken before the Council can take a final decision on abolishing internal border controls. With this in mind, the project for updating the Schengen Information System (SIS II) is of utmost importance. The system must be finalised and ready for use in all the existing and new Schengen States before a decision can be made on the abolition of internal border controls. On the basis of the information that is available to us at the moment, the timetable for implementing the SIS II system is very critical, and meeting the proposed target dates requires significant further efforts.

Further, it is of utmost importance that the legislation on SIS II be finalised. I am convinced that the European Parliament and the Council will work efficiently to complete these legal instruments so as to enable their final adoption before the end of this year. To this end, good cooperation between the EU institutions is of crucial importance.

On muistettava, että tietojen vaihto on nykyisen rikostorjunnan kaikkein tärkein asia. Sanotaan, että nykyiset taistelut voitetaan aseilla, mutta sodat tiedustelutiedolla.
Better exchange of information between law enforcement and judicial authorities is essential in the fight against organised crime and terrorism. The information gathered should be used effectively; however, it should be made sure that fundamental rights are not violated. We should be able to take the cooperation among the Member States’ authorities to a totally new level – both inside the Member States and among them at Union level. A well-functioning cooperation between the Member States requires a productive and efficient contribution of authorities at national level. Finland will explore issues related to cooperation between European police, customs and border guard authorities in the light of its own experiences.

To that end, the principle of availability will be applied, according to which law enforcement authorities provide information to their counterparts in other Member States on the same basis as they provide it to national authorities. Finland will further the application of the principle of availability, taking also account of the importance of the Treaty of Prüm. Suomen hallitus ja eduskunta ovat ottaneet myönteisen kannan Suomen mukanaoloon EU:n sisäisen turvallisuuden vahvistamisessa. The principle of availability should be established as the cornerstone of information exchange from the beginning of 2008. Finland will take this project forward, paying particular attention to the data protection issues that have to be addressed in relation to police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters, before the principle of availability can be applied. I endorse Ms Luhtanen’s view that data protection issues falling under the third pillar are a key priority for the Finnish Ministry of Justice. Creating a relevant framework for data protection is fundamental to increased cooperation between law enforcement authorities.

It is important that the principle of availability will be applied as laid out in the Hague Programme and outlined during the Austrian Presidency. In police matters, the Presidency will push for the promotion of operational cooperation and the use of an intelligence-based model as a basis for this cooperation.

More funding will be allocated to the EU Justice and Home Affairs sector for the period 2007-2013 in accordance with the new Financial Perspective. Following lengthy negotiations, the Justice and Home Affairs Council reached at its meeting of 2 June 2006 an agreement on the content of the Framework Programme on Security and Safeguarding Liberties and the specific Programme on Criminal Justice. In my view, it is important that the European Parliament will issue its opinion on the matter as soon as possible in order to enable the effective implementation of these programmes, aimed at promoting internal security, from the beginning of 2007. There have been constructive discussions with LIBE Committee at civil servant level about the Framework Programme on solidarity and the management of migration flows. I hope that we will be able to discuss the four funds under this Framework Programme in a positive spirit, with a view to reaching a good compromise.

Finland will seek to bolster operational cooperation at EU level. Cooperation between the Finnish police, customs authorities and border control authorities has been cited as an example of a good cooperation model. The model can be used to further intensify intelligence-led law enforcement. In the fight against terrorism, the aim is to implement the strategy adopted by the EU in December 2005. The main focus will be on the concrete implementation of the Action Plan against radicalisation and recruitment into terrorism. An important new field in the fight against terrorism is the protection of critical infrastructure; the Commission is finalising a concrete initiative on this. For addressing issues related to the protection of transport and energy services, the EU perspective alone is not sufficient.

In July 2006, at the beginning of Finland’s Presidency, the Union will introduce a central crisis coordination system which will offer an optimal response to cross-border emergencies. Coordination of civil protection between the Member States will be developed by reforming the emergency and information system. The EU's emergency and crisis response capacities need to be reinforced.

During its Presidency, Finland will implement the strategy for the external dimension of Justice and Home Affairs, which was adopted last December. In line with the strategy, the Presidency will seek to ensure co-ordination and consistency between the EU’s Justice and Home Affairs and external relations. A close cooperation between these two policy areas is necessary to the management of internal security threats. The Presidency’s key priority for external relations in the field of Justice and Home Affairs is to bolster cooperation between the EU and Russia and to prepare the EU’s internal action-oriented paper on this cooperation. We must further operational cooperation between the EU and Russia in effectively implementing the roadmap for the creation of a common space of freedom, security and justice. In this context, particular attention will be paid to combating organised crime and human trafficking. The EU’s and Russia’s readiness for cooperation will also contribute to enhancing operational police cooperation. Another Presidency priority for external relations in the JHA sector is transatlantic relations.

In the field of external relations, our objective is also to promote concrete cooperation among law enforcement authorities. Criminals are more effective in their operations than before, which is why it is necessary to increase the effectiveness of the work of the authorities. The authorities will need to be able to cooperate across all borders. During its Presidency, Finland will give examples of good practices, such as cooperation in fighting organised crime in the Baltic Sea region (the Baltic Sea Task Force). Because of the EU’s general external relations and the work programme for Finland’s Presidency, the Justice and Home Affairs agenda will focus, for example, on cooperation between the EU and the Asian ASEM countries. In immigration, asylum and border control issues, emphasis will be placed on the situation in the Mediterranean region and on Africa in accordance with the guidelines set out by the European Council. We will also emphasise that account should be taken of the results of the UN High Level Dialogue on Migration and Development. According to the agenda drafted by the Finnish Presidency, the July Council will address the situation in the Mediterranean region – taking account of the results of the Rabat meeting – and the issue of building a broader and a more holistic European solidarity.

I have now given you a brief summary of some of the Finnish Presidency priorities for Home Affairs. I am convinced that the cooperation between European Parliament and the Council will help to improve the security of every EU citizen. EU’s objectives as regards competitiveness, education and employment can only be reached by effectively fighting organised crime and corruption through cooperation in Justice and Home Affairs.

I will do my best to further close cooperation between the Council and the European Parliament, particularly its LIBE Committee, so that we reach our common objectives. I would like to thank the Committee for giving me this opportunity to outline the priorities for Finland’s Presidency. I would be happy to elaborate on these priorities and answer any other questions you may have.