Detention conditions in the EU

9.11.2011

Question for oral answer O-000296/2011
to the Council
Rule 115
Birgit Sippel, Claude Moraes, Carmen Romero López, Sylvie Guillaume, Tanja Fajon, Roberto Gualtieri, Rita Borsellino
on behalf of the S&D Group

Following a request by the Council in the framework of the Stockholm Programme and numerous requests by the European Parliament, the Commission recently issued a Green Paper on the application of EU criminal justice legislation in the field of detention.

The paper launches an open consultation exercise for stakeholders on EU actions for improvement of detention conditions to ensure mutual trust in judicial cooperation. It addresses critical issues such as the impact of differing standards of detention conditions on the application of EU legislative instruments, like the European Arrest Warrant and the European Supervision Order. It also addresses the possible role of EU action in such fields as pre-trial detention, alternative measures and children’s detention conditions, in order to improve the impact on detention conditions across Europe.

The Annexe to the Green Paper highlights a number of concerns related to the very diverse situation in Member States re numbers of pre-trial detainees, overcrowding, and the prison population rate, including the detention rates of children and non-nationals. The European Court of Human Rights has repeatedly condemned EU Member States with regard to detention conditions, length of pre-trial detention and administration of justice, including on the basis of reports by the Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture.

How does the Council intend to address the protection of the fundamental rights enshrined in the EU Charter for all persons in detention that relate to detention conditions, lack of facilities, overcrowding, misuse and abuse of alternative measures, and long pre-trial detention, that have often been the subject of rulings by the ECHR?  How does the Council intend to address the issues of EU competence that have a direct or indirect impact on detention conditions and fundamental rights of detainees, such as the abuse of pre-trial detention and the promotion of the use of alternative measures? How does the Council intend to address the issue of the impact that detention conditions have on the application of critical EU instruments for judicial cooperation in criminal matters, like the European Arrest Warrant or the European Supervision Order?

What will the Council do to ensure a proper follow-up to the European Commission Green Paper?

Tabled: 9.11.2011

Forwarded: 10.11.2011

Deadline for reply: 1.12.2011