WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1040/98 by Nel van DIJK to the Commission. Eavesdropping by MI6 and Echelon
Date: 1998-04-06
Institutions: European Parliament, VAN DIJK
Subjects: United Kingdom, confidentiality, interference, protection of communications, public safety

19. 11. 98

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 354/55

(98/C 354/95)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1039/98

by Nel van Dijk (V) to the Commission

(6 April 1998)

Subject: Eavesdropping by MI6 and Echelon

Does the British foreign security service MI6 spy on EU partners with the aim of gathering information for

1.
use by the British Government during international negotiations (1)?

2.
Can the Commission confirm the existence of the American/British eavesdropping and interception system
Echelon? Does Echelon routinely intercept all communications by telephone, fax and e-mail in Europe? Do the
intelligence services concerned use Echelon, inter alia, to gather confidential information about the positions of
parties to GATT/WTO negotiations in order to strengthen the negotiating position of their own governments (2)?

Does  the  Commission  have  any  evidence  that  it  has  itself  been  spied  on  by  British,  American  or  other

3.
intelligence and security services?

Does the Commission agree that if the government of a Member State uses its security services to gather
4.
confidential information about EU partners and/or European institutions, it makes a mockery of the trust which
the Member States ought to be able to place in one another, and breaches the solidarity which Member States
should be able to expect from one another in an (cid:145)ever closer union(cid:146)?

(1)  Britse MI6 bespioneert partners in Europese Unie (Britain(cid:146)s MI6 spies on partners in the European Union), NRC Handelsblad, 2 January

1998; How to be Foreign Secretary, BBC2 documentary, 4 January 1998.

(2)  Steve Wright, (cid:145)An appraisal of technologies of political control(cid:146) (working document), Luxembourg, EP, STOA, 6 January 1998; see also

De Groene Amsterdammer, 18 and 25 February 1998.

Answer given by Mr Santer on behalf of the Commission

(15 May 1998)

1  and  2.
defined by the EC Treaty.

The  Commission  is  not  able  to  comment  on  such  matters  as  they  fall  outside  its  competence  as

The Commission nonetheless remains vigilant in defence of Community interests, and condemns any and

3.
all threats to the integrity of classified information held by the institutions.

4.

The Honourable Member is referred to the answers to questions 1-3 above.

(98/C 354/96)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1040/98

by Nel van Dijk (V) to the Commission

(6 April 1998)

Subject: Eavesdropping by MI6 and Echelon

How does the Commission secure its confidential internal communications (e.g. by telephone, fax, telex

1.
and e-mail) against interception by outsiders?

In  view  of  the  reports  about  eavesdropping  by  MI6  and  Echelon,  does  the  Commission  consider  it

2.
appropriate to secure its internal communications more effectively?

3.
In the light of the evidence concerning Echelon(cid:146)s random interception of communications and the use of
the information gathered by means of it for purposes other than that of protecting State security, are there not
strong  arguments  in  favour  of  allowing  members  of  the  public,  organizations  and  businesses  to  use  strong
encryption methods?

4. What steps will the Commission take vis-a‘-vis the British Government and/or the Council?