Shabana Mahmood to hold EU law enforcement cooperation talks with Magnus Brunner
UK home secretary Shabana Mahmood meets the EU's home affairs commissioner Magnus Brunner on Monday for talks on eu law enforcement cooperation, covering migration, border management and counter-terrorism.
Shabana Mahmood to hold EU law enforcement cooperation talks with Magnus Brunner
Second meeting in two months
Shabana Mahmood meets the EU's home affairs commissioner Magnus Brunner on Monday, their second meeting in two months, according to the European Commission. The agenda spans migration, border management, law enforcement cooperation and counter-terrorism.
The talks also cover the UK rejoining some police and security databases it lost access to after Brexit, plus a possible return to Eurodac, the EU's migration database.
Databases at the table
Two databases stand out in the discussion:
- Eurodac collects fingerprints and facial images of asylum seekers from the age of six, and holds security flags on people linked to terrorism or serious crime.
- The Schengen Information System contains data on missing persons, stolen goods, vehicles and number plates, and fugitives; about 20m searches are made daily on it, mostly on cars, according to EU data.
Burnham's push for data sharing
The meeting comes days after Andy Burnham told MPs he wanted Britain back in the databases. He said Ursula von der Leyen was open to restoring data sharing on immigration after their New York meeting, arguing it was "control" that the UK "lost" and deserved "more attention" in the Brexit debate.
"I will work hard to see if we can get a practical arrangement on that very issue at the summit in November"
Brunner, for his part, said "the UK's contribution is indispensable" to suppressing irregular migration, as the EU rolls out new laws to speed up asylum decisions and deportations.
Crossings down and Brunner's wider visit
Frontex figures published on Monday show a 43% decline in small boats crossings the Channel. Brunner said the reforms are paying off in the UK too, and that illegal crossings at EU external borders are down 55% over two years, with a further third this year, while asylum applications sit at record lows in former main destination countries.
Brunner's schedule beyond the Mahmood meeting includes:
- Talks with MI5 director general Ken McCallum and a visit to the National Counter Terrorism Security Office.
- A meeting with senior officials from the UK's child sexual abuse centre on joint efforts against such crimes.
- A lecture at King's College London on the EU's new Pact on Migration and Asylum, a framework of 10 pieces of legislation overhauling border management, asylum processing and information sharing.
He is expected to say the new laws have had a significant impact alongside shifting political priorities in Germany, Italy and France. The Home Office has not commented; Burnham intends to press his case at the EU-UK summit in November.
