Tony Killeen (Clare, Fianna Fail)

Gabhaim buíochas leis na Seanadóirí a labhair ar an ábhar seo. I thank Senators for their contributions on this issue.

Senator Bradford mentioned balance and citizens' rights to privacy, expressing his concern that we are rushing this motion through the Oireachtas. I referred to this in my opening remarks; speed is necessary because of the timescale at European level and the fact that the second of the existing agreements expires on 31 July and must be put back in place if it is to continue.

Senators Bradford and Ryan asked about reciprocal arrangements. The agreement states that in the event of the implementation of a passenger name record in the European Union, or in one or more of its member states, that requires air carriers to make available to authorities PNR data for persons whose travel itinerary includes a flight to or from the European Union, DHS shall, strictly on the basis of reciprocity, actively promote the co-operation of the airlines within its jurisdiction.

Also in the letter from the United States, which forms an important part of this agreement and sets out in detail some of the improvements from the two previous arrangements in terms of balance for citizens' rights, there is a commitment to foster police and judicial co-operation, whereby DHS will encourage the transfer of analytical information flowing from PNR data by competent US authorities to police and judicial authorities of the member states concerned and where appropriate to Europol and Eurojust. DHS expects the EU and its member states will likewise encourage their competent authorities to provide analytical information flowing from PNR data to DHS and other US authorities concerned.

Yesterday we saw the importance of co-operation between police services in combating the drugs trade and other criminal activity. We must ensure important information on crime is shared between authorities.

I thank Senators Wilson and Mooney for the points they made and for their support for the measure. This is a complex and sensitive subject where we must strike a balance between public security considerations and a need to protect the rights of citizens. European citizens are as concerned as their American counterparts about the protection of human life and the prevention of international criminal activity. This is the third agreement between the US and the EU on passenger name records since 2004, and Ireland participated in the adoption of its predecessor. While it would be preferable if there were no need to collect such data, it has been accepted by airlines and passengers that it is necessary to assist in preventing and combating terrorism and international crime.

In the course of the negotiations on this new agreement, the European Commission responded effectively by arranging an exchange of letters setting out precisely the scope of the agreement and extracting assurances from the US authorities on the use of the data and their safe custody. The 19 categories are set out in the file laid before the House yesterday. Efforts by the European Commission to secure a high level of data protection in this new agreement have had a positive outcome.

The comparisons between the current interim agreement and the new agreement are favourable in the context of the balance mentioned by some Senators, with the number of data items being reduced from 34 to 19 through a process of rationalisation. Important new protections for data and avenues of redress for people seeking information about or correction of passenger name record data are provided in the new agreement, which is a welcome development for US citizens.

Ireland's participation in the adoption of the agreement together with our European partners will ensure continuity and certainty for airlines and passengers on transatlantic flights, and I commend it to the House.