Much Ado About PNR

Name, address, phone number, credit card details, travel itinerary, ticket and baggage information: all data which would be collected under the Passenger Name Record legislative proposal. This measure, first rejected in 2013 over concerns about the impact it could have on fundamental rights and data protection, is now again on the agenda of MEPs. Read on to find out more about it.

An EU-wide Passenger Name Record (PNR) would require the systematic collection, use and retention of data on passengers taking international flights. By making the identification of potential suspects easier, it could assist security services better fight terrorism threats and other criminal activities.

Members of the Parliament's civil liberties committee rejected the proposal in 2013 because of concerns about the potential impact on fundamental rights and data protection. However, recent terrorist attacks and concerns about the growing threat posed by Europeans returning home after fighting for the so-called “Islamic State” have given the measure a new, decisive boost.

What next?

In a resolution on anti-terrorism measures on 11 February, MEPs pledged to work "towards the finalisation of an EU PNR directive by the end of the year". A revised draft report is expected to be presented to the civil liberties committee at the end of February by British ECR member Timothy Kirkhope.

In order to ensure that the new proposal does not infringe upon fundamental rights Parliament has been encouraging the member states to make progress on the Data Protection Package. This would allow negotiations on both proposals to take place simultaneously.

Click here for more on the PNR proposals.

Further information

• More articles on PNR
• More on data protection
• European Parliament resolution of 11 February 2015 on anti-terrorism measures
• (open in a new tab) Proposal on the use of Passenger Name Record data (2011)
• Press release: Passenger Name Record and data protection talks should go hand in hand, MEPs say
• European IS fighters: plans to avoid threats to the EU’s internal security debated by MEPs