Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION determining certain direct financial consequences incurred as a result of the cessation of the participation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in certain acts of the Union in the field of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters adopted before the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon
Date: 2014-09-26
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU police cooperation, Treaty of Lisbon, United Kingdom, database, exchange of information, judicial cooperation in criminal matters in the EU, reimbursement of aid













EUR-Lex - 52014PC0595 - EN











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52014PC0595

Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION determining certain direct financial consequences incurred as a result of the cessation of the participation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in certain acts of the Union in the field of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters adopted before the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon /* COM/2014/0595 final - 2014/0277 (NLE) */









EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1.           CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL
Protocol (No 36) on transitional
provisions annexed to the Treaty on European Union (TEU), to the Treaty on the
Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) and to the Treaty on the European
Atomic Energy Community confirms in its Article 9 that the legal effects
of the acts of the Union adopted on the basis of the TEU prior to the entry
into force of the Treaty of Lisbon shall be preserved until those acts are
repealed, annulled or amended.
Article 10(1) of Protocol (No 36) provides that
as a transitional measure, and with respect to acts of the Union in the field
of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters which have
been adopted before the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, the powers of
the institutions shall be the following at the date of entry into force of that
Treaty, 1 December 2009: the powers of the Commission under Article 258
TFEU shall not be applicable and the powers of the Court of Justice of the EU
under Title VI of the TEU, in the version in force before the entry into
force of the Treaty of Lisbon, shall remain the same, including where they have
been accepted under Article 35(2) of the said TEU.
Article 10(3) of Protocol (No 36) provides
that the transitional measure mentioned in Article 10(1) shall cease to
have effect five years after the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, on 1
December 2014.
Article 10(4), first subparagraph of Protocol
(No 36) provides that at the latest six months before the expiry of the
transitional period referred to in Article 10(3), the United Kingdom may notify
to the Council that it does not accept, with respect to the acts referred to in
Article 10(1), the powers of the institutions referred to in Article 10(1)
as set out in the Treaties. In case the United Kingdom has made that
notification, all acts referred to in Article 10(1) shall cease to apply
to it as from the date of expiry of the transitional period referred to in Article
10(3), that is from 1 December 2014.
The United Kingdom made the notification
mentioned in the first subparagraph of Article 10(4) of Protocol (No 36) on
24 July 2013.
Article 10(4), second subparagraph of Protocol
(No°36) provides that the Council, acting by a qualified majority on a proposal
from the Commission, shall determine the necessary consequential and
transitional arrangements. The United Kingdom shall not participate in the
adoption of this decision.
Article 10(4), third subparagraph of Protocol
(No 36) provides that the Council, acting by a qualified majority on a proposal
from the Commission, may also adopt a decision determining that the United Kingdom shall bear the direct financial consequences, if any, necessarily and
unavoidably incurred as a result of the cessation of its participation in those
acts.
Article 10(5) of Protocol (No 36) provides
that the United Kingdom may, at any time afterwards, notify the Council of its
wish to participate in acts which have ceased to apply to it pursuant to Article
10(4), first subparagraph.
The United Kingdom announced that it does not
intend to notify the Council of its wish to participate in Council Decision
2008/615/JHA of 23 June 2008 on stepping up of cross-border cooperation,
particularly in combating terrorism and cross-border crime,[1]
in Council Decision 2008/616/JHA of 23 June 2008 on the
implementation of Council Decision 2008/615/JHA on stepping up of cross-border
cooperation, particularly in combating terrorism and cross-border crime[2]
and in Council Framework Decision 2009/905/JHA of 30
November 2009 on accreditation of forensic service providers carrying out
laboratory activities[3]
(hereafter the "Prüm Decisions").
As a consequence of the notification of
24 July 2013 and of the non-notification of a wish to participate,
the Prüm Decisions cease to apply to the United Kingdom from
1 December 2014.
In view of the practical and operational
significance of the Prüm Decisions to the Union for public security, and more
particularly for law enforcement and the prevention, detection and
investigation of criminal offences, the Commission has proposed a Council
Decision on consequential and transitional arrangements which provides for
binding arrangements […].[4]
The United Kingdom has been allocated funds
from the ISEC Programme as set out in Council Decision 2007/125/JHA of 12
February 2007 establishing for the period 2007 to 2013, as part of General
Programme on Security and Safeguarding Liberties, the Specific Programme
‘Prevention of and Fight against Crime’[5]
for two projects related to the Prüm Decisions, first concerning the
implementation by the United Kingdom of the Prüm DNA Exchange, with a maximum
co-funding of EUR 961 019 granted to the Home Office, and secondly
concerning the Prüm Fingerprint Evaluation project by the United Kingdom, with
a maximum co-funding of EUR 547 836 granted to the Home Office. This
makes for a total of EUR 1 508 855.
If the United Kingdom does not respect a
condition contained in the Council Decision on consequential and transitional
arrangements […], or if the United Kingdom decides not to participate in the
Prüm Decisions, it should repay the sum which has been actually paid to it, up
to the total of EUR 1 508 855.
2.           LEGAL
ELEMENTS OF THE PROPOSAL
 Summary of the proposed measures The proposal determines the direct financial consequences  necessarily and unavoidably incurred as a result of the cessation of the participation of the United Kingdom in acts in the meaning of Article 10(4), third subparagraph of Protocol (No°36). 
 Legal basis Article 10(4), third subparagraph of Protocol (No°36). 
 Principle of subsidiarity Only the Council is authorised, on the basis of Article 10(4), third subparagraph of Protocol (No°36), to adopt a decision determining that the United Kingdom shall bear the direct financial consequences necessarily and unavoidably incurred as a result of the cessation of its participation in the acts concerned. The principle of subsidiarity is therefore not applicable. 
 Principle of proportionality The proposal complies with the principle of proportionality. 
 Choice of instrument 
 Proposed instrument: Council decision. 
 Article 10(4), third subparagraph of Protocol (No°36) provides for the Council, acting by a qualified majority on a proposal from the Commission, to possibly adopt "a decision determining that the United Kingdom shall bear the direct financial consequences, if any, necessarily and unavoidably incurred as a result of the cessation of its participation in those acts". A decision is therefore the form of act expressly provided for in this provision of primary law. 
3.           BUDGETARY IMPACT
The proposal has a potential positive impact on
the European Union budget, as it provides in certain hypotheses for the
repayment by the United Kingdom of up to EUR 1 508 855 received from the Union.
2014/0277 (NLE)
Proposal for a
COUNCIL DECISION
determining certain direct financial
consequences incurred as a result of the cessation of the participation of the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in certain acts of the
Union in the field of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal
matters adopted before the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the
Protocol on transitional provisions, and in particular the third subparagraph
of Article 10(4) thereof,
Having regard to the
proposal from the European Commission,
Whereas:
(1)       Under Protocol (No 36) on
transitional provisions, annexed to the Treaty on
European Union, to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and to the Treaty establishing the European
Atomic Energy Community, the
United Kingdom had the possiblity to notify to the Council, by 31 May 2014 at
the latest, that it does not accept the powers of the Commission and of the
Court of Justice introduced by the Treaty of Lisbon with respect to acts of the
Union in the field of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal
matters which had been adopted before the entry into force of the Treaty of
Lisbon.
(2)       By letter to the President
of the Council of 24 July 2013, the United Kingdom has notified that it did not
accept the powers of the Commission and of the Court of Justice introduced by
the Treaty of Lisbon in the field of police cooperation and judicial
cooperation. As a consequence the relevant acts in the field of police
cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters cease to apply to the United Kingdom on 1 December 2014.
(3)       The United Kingdom may notify its wish to participate in the acts which have ceased to apply to
it.
(4)       By letter to the President
of the Council and to the President of the Commission of [… 2014], the United Kingdom has notified its wish to participate in some of the acts.
(5)       In accordance with the second
subparagraph of Article 10(4) of Protocol 36, the Council should, on a proposal
from the Commission, determine the necessary consequential and transitional
arrangements. The Council may also, on the basis of the third subparagraph of
the same provision, determine that the United Kingdom should bear the financial
consequences necessarily and unavoidably incurred as a result of the cessation
of its participation in those acts.
(6)       As the United Kingdom did not notify the Council of its wish to
participate in Council Decisions 2008/615/JHA[6] and 2008/616/JHA[7] and Council
Framework Decision 2009/905/JHA[8], collectively known as the Prüm Decisions, they will cease to apply to the United Kingdom as from 1 December
2014. However, given the practical and operational significance of the Prüm
Decisions to the Union for public security, and more particularly for law
enforcement and the prevention, detection and investigation of criminal
offences, the Council decided in its Decision […][9] that the United Kingdom
will undertake a full business and implementation case to assess the merits and
practical benefits of the United Kingdom re-joining the Prüm Decisions and the
necessary steps for it to do so, the results of which will be published by 30
September 2015. If the business and implementation case is positive, the United Kingdom will decide, by 31 December 2015, on whether to notify, within the following
four weeks, of its wish to participate in the Prüm Decisions, in accordance
with Article 10(5) of Protocol 36.
(7)     Funds from the Programme ‘Prevention of and Fight against
Crime’ established by Council Decision 2007/125/JHA[10] have been allocated to the United Kingdom for two projects related
to Decisions 2008/615/JHA and 2008/616/JHA and Framework Decision 2009/905/JHA,
first concerning the implementation by the United Kingdom of the Prüm DNA Exchange,
with a maximum co-funding of EUR 961 019 granted to the Home Office,
and secondly concerning the Prüm Fingerprint Evaluation project by the United
Kingdom, with a maximum co-funding of EUR 547 836 granted to the Home
Office. This makes a total of EUR 1 508 855.
(8)     In case the United Kingdom does not respect one of the
deadlines contained in Article 1 of Decision […determining certain
consequential and transitional arrangements] or if the United Kingdom decides
not to participate in Decisions 2008/615/JHA and
2008/616/JHA and Framework Decision 2009/905/JHA, the
United Kingdom should repay, as a direct financial consequence, necessarily and
unavoidably incurred as a result of the cessation of its participation in the
Prüm Decisions, the amounts actually paid by the Commission as a contribution
from the Union budget for the implementation of those Decisions.
(9)     In accordance with the third
subparagraph of Article 10(4) of Protocol (No 36) on
transitional provisions, the United Kingdom is
participating in the adoption of this Decision and is bound by it,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:
Article 1
In case the United Kingdom does not respect one of the deadlines set
out in Article 1 of Decision [… determining certain
consequential and transitional arrangements] or if
the United Kingdom decides not to participate in Decisions 2008/615/JHA and
2008/616/JHA and Framework Decision 2009/905/JHA, it shall repay to the budget
of the European Union the sums received under the Programme 'Prevention of and
Fight against Crime' up to EUR 1 508 855.
Article 2
This Decision shall enter into force on 1
December 2014.
Done at Brussels,
                                                                       For
the Council
                                                                       The
President
[1]               OJ L 210, 6.8.2008, p. 1.
[2]               OJ L 210, 6.8.2008, p. 12.
[3]               OJ L 322,
9.12.2009, p. 14.
[4]               [insert reference to the other proposal of the same
date]
[5]               OJ L 58, 24.2.2007, p. 7.
[6]               Council Decision 2008/615/JHA of  23 June 2008 on the
stepping up of cross-border cooperation, particularly in combating terrorism
and cross-border crime (OJ L 210, 6.8.2008, p. 1).
[7]               Council Decision 2008/616/JHA of 23 June 2008 on the
implementation of Decision 2008/615/JHA on the stepping up of cross-border
cooperation, particularly in combating terrorism and cross-border crime (OJ L
210, 6.8.2008, p. 12).
[8]               Council Framework Decision 2009/905/JHA of 30
November 2009 on accreditation of forensic service providers carrying out
laboratory activities (OJ L 322,
9.12.2009, p. 14).
[9]               Council Decision … of … determining certain consequential and transitional arrangements
concerning the cessation of participation of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland in certain acts of the Union in the field of
police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters adopted before
the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon.
[10]             Council Decision of 12 February 2007 establishing for
the period 2007 to 2013, as part of General Programme on Security and
Safeguarding Liberties, the Specific Programme Prevention of and Fight against
Crime (OJ L 58, 24.2.2007, p. 7).