Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies for their contributions on this motion. A number of specific questions were raised, which I want to address. First, regarding the timing of this proposal, the Commission published its proposal on 27 August, so detailed discussions took place in recent weeks on technical aspects of the proposal. The Department moved as soon as the proposal was published to obtain legal advice and then sought to obtain Government approval.

Regarding the evaluation process, the Commission carries out an evaluation of the arrangements the UK has put in place to connect to the Prüm system and that involves an evaluation by the Commission of technical connection, training, security and data protection steps that the UK has put in place. The Commission carries out the evaluation, not the Department. As the UK has already participated in Prüm before Brexit, it is expected that the evaluation will be positive and on time for next June.

In relation to our technical capacity, no further preparations are required in Ireland for us to participate, so once the extension is granted, we can continue to exchange and, equally, once the permanent evaluation is completed and agreed, we can take part.

Regarding data protection, the Prüm measures include specific and bespoke data protections and in addition, the Commission has adopted an adequacy decision, including strong safeguards for law enforcement data exchange with the UK. This has been subject to consultation with the Parliament. This includes a sunset clause of four years. Prüm is limited to fingerprints, DNA and vehicles.

As I mentioned in my opening remarks, these measures are essential to ensure the continued close law enforcement co-operation that Ireland shares with the United Kingdom and it is vital that we meet the highest standards possible when it comes to the investigation and the prosecution of crimes and the ongoing transfer of Prüm data, which will help to ensure that we can do that.

This extension allows until 30 June 2022 for the European Commission to complete its evaluation and any further measures will come before the House in advance of that date. On behalf of the Minister for Justice, I thank all Members for attending today.

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