REPORT on the proposal for a Council decision on the application of the provisions of the Schengen acquis in the area of the Schengen Information System in the Republic of Cyprus
1.4.2022 - (COM(2021)0472 – C9‑0350/2021 – 2021/0266(NLE)) - *
Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs
Rapporteur: Peter Kofod
DRAFT EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION
on the proposal for a Council decision on the application of the provisions of the Schengen acquis in the area of the Schengen Information System in the Republic of Cyprus
(COM(2021)0472 – C9‑0350/2021 – 2021/0266(NLE))
(Consultation)
The European Parliament,
– having regard to the Commission proposal to the Council (COM(2021)0472),
– having regard to Article 3(2) of the 2003 Act of Accession, pursuant to which the Council consulted Parliament (C9‑0350/2021),
– having regard to Rule 82 of its Rules of Procedure,
– having regard to the report of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (A9-0082/2022),
1. Approves the Commission proposal;
2. Calls on the Council to notify Parliament if it intends to depart from the text approved by Parliament;
3. Asks the Council to consult Parliament again if it intends to substantially amend the text approved by Parliament;
4. Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council and the Commission.
EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
A. Background
On 28 May 2019, Cyprus declared its willingness and commitment to apply all parts of the Schengen acquis and to be subject to Schengen evaluations, to the extent possible considering the special circumstances of Cyprus as recognised in Protocol No 10 to the 2003 Act of Accession.
In line with Article 3(1) and (2) of the 2003 Act of Accession[1] certain provisions of the Schengen acquis are already applicable in Cyprus from the date of accession, while other provisions only apply pursuant to a Council Decision to that effect after verification that the necessary conditions for the application of all parts of that acquis have been met. This verification is done in accordance with the relevant Schengen evaluation procedures. Council Regulation (EU) No 1053/2013, establishing an evaluation and monitoring mechanism to verify the application of the Schengen acquis[2], provides for these Schengen evaluation procedures.
The Schengen evaluation in the area of the Schengen Information System (SIS) can only take place when the SIS has been put into operation in Cyprus. For this purpose, it is required that the Council adopts a Decision on putting into effect the provisions of the Schengen acquis in the area of the SIS in Cyprus. Such Decision can only be taken after Cyprus has made the necessary technical and legal arrangements, including relating to data protection, to process SIS data and exchange supplementary information. Accordingly, a Schengen evaluation to verify the level of data protection in Cyprus was carried out in November 2019. On 5 November 2020 the Commission adopted, by means of Commission Implementing Decision[3], the evaluation report confirming that a satisfactory level of data protection is met.
B. Position of the rapporteur
The entry into force of the Council Decision should allow for SIS data to be transferred to Cyprus. The use of the SIS data in Cyprus should allow the Commission to verify, in accordance with the Schengen evaluation procedures, that the provisions concerning the SIS are being applied correctly.
Certain restrictions on the use of the SIS in Cyprus will be imposed until the Council has decided on the full application of the Schengen acquis in Cyprus and on the lifting of checks at the crossing points between the areas of the Republic of Cyprus in which the Government of the Republic of Cyprus exercises effective control and the areas in which it does not. Such Decision shall only be taken when it has been verified that the necessary conditions for the application of all parts of the relevant acquis have been met in Cyprus in accordance with Article 3(2) of the 2003 Act of Accession.
In light of recent challenges facing Cyprus, namely a surge of illegal migrants arriving guided by smugglers from the northern part of its territory and in view of the fact that they illegally cross the 184 kilometre long so called Green Line, bypassing any checks at the crossing points between the areas of the Republic of Cyprus in which the Government of the Republic of Cyprus exercises effective control and the areas in which it does not, the Rapporteur considers it paramount for Cyprus authorities to be able to verify information in the SIS. As a result, border control and law enforcement authorities will be able to enter and consult alerts on persons or objects in the SIS in order to ensure a higher level of public security.
The Rapporteur stresses, however, that Cyprus accession to Schengen area remains to be assessed independently of this participation in the SIS. Any future accession to the Schengen area should be evaluated solely in view of its ability to keep the external borders of the European Union safe and secure.
On this basis, the Rapporteur recommends that Parliament endorse the draft Council’s text without amendments to encourage the Member States to proceed speedily with the adoption of the Decision.
PROCEDURE – COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE
Title |
Proposal for a Council decision on the application of the provisions of the Schengen acquis in the area of Schengen Information System in the Republic of Cyprus |
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References |
COM(2021)0472 – C9-0350/2021 – 2021/0266(NLE) |
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Date of consultation / request for consent |
12.8.2021 |
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Committee responsible Date announced in plenary |
LIBE 13.9.2021 |
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Rapporteurs Date appointed |
Peter Kofod 13.1.2022 |
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Discussed in committee |
16.3.2022 |
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Date adopted |
31.3.2022 |
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Result of final vote |
+: –: 0: |
46 5 2 |
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Members present for the final vote |
Magdalena Adamowicz, Abir Al-Sahlani, Malik Azmani, Vladimír Bilčík, Vasile Blaga, Karolin Braunsberger-Reinhold, Patrick Breyer, Saskia Bricmont, Joachim Stanisław Brudziński, Jorge Buxadé Villalba, Damien Carême, Clare Daly, Marcel de Graaff, Anna Júlia Donáth, Lucia Ďuriš Nicholsonová, Cornelia Ernst, Laura Ferrara, Nicolaus Fest, Jean-Paul Garraud, Sophia in ‘t Veld, Patryk Jaki, Assita Kanko, Fabienne Keller, Peter Kofod, Moritz Körner, Alice Kuhnke, Hélène Laporte, Jeroen Lenaers, Lukas Mandl, Nuno Melo, Nadine Morano, Maite Pagazaurtundúa, Emil Radev, Paulo Rangel, Terry Reintke, Karlo Ressler, Diana Riba i Giner, Sara Skyttedal, Vincenzo Sofo, Martin Sonneborn, Tineke Strik, Ramona Strugariu, Annalisa Tardino, Tomas Tobé, Yana Toom, Tom Vandendriessche, Elissavet Vozemberg-Vrionidi, Jadwiga Wiśniewska, Javier Zarzalejos |
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Substitutes present for the final vote |
Bartosz Arłukowicz, Christian Doleschal, Anne-Sophie Pelletier, Miguel Urbán Crespo |
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Date tabled |
1.4.2022 |
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FINAL VOTE BY ROLL CALL IN COMMITTEE RESPONSIBLE
46 |
+ |
ECR |
Joachim Stanisław Brudziński, Jorge Buxadé Villalba, Patryk Jaki, Assita Kanko, Vincenzo Sofo, Jadwiga Wiśniewska |
ID |
Nicolaus Fest, Jean-Paul Garraud, Peter Kofod, Hélène Laporte, Annalisa Tardino, Tom Vandendriessche |
NI |
Laura Ferrara |
PPE |
Magdalena Adamowicz, Bartosz Arłukowicz, Vladimír Bilčík, Vasile Blaga, Karolin Braunsberger-Reinhold, Christian Doleschal, Jeroen Lenaers, Lukas Mandl, Nuno Melo, Nadine Morano, Emil Radev, Paulo Rangel, Karlo Ressler, Sara Skyttedal, Tomas Tobé, Elissavet Vozemberg-Vrionidi, Javier Zarzalejos |
Renew |
Abir Al-Sahlani, Malik Azmani, Anna Júlia Donáth, Lucia Ďuriš Nicholsonová, Sophia in 't Veld, Moritz Körner, Maite Pagazaurtundúa, Ramona Strugariu, Yana Toom |
Verts/ALE |
Patrick Breyer, Saskia Bricmont, Damien Carême, Alice Kuhnke, Terry Reintke, Diana Riba i Giner, Tineke Strik |
5 |
- |
ID |
Marcel de Graaff |
The Left |
Clare Daly, Cornelia Ernst, Anne-Sophie Pelletier, Miguel Urbán Crespo |
2 |
0 |
NI |
Martin Sonneborn |
Renew |
Fabienne Keller |
Key to symbols:
+ : in favour
- : against
0 : abstention