15.6.2022
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
L 160/7
(28)
It should be possible to carry out verification visits to monitor the progress of the implementation of an action plan following an evaluation that did not identify a serious deficiency, where deemed necessary.
Verification visits should always be organised before the closure of an action plan following an evaluation that identified a serious deficiency and a first-time evaluation.
In terms of the organisational and reporting requirements, verification visits should be lighter than evaluation visits.
In particular, they should comprise smaller teams and should not lead to new findings or require the adoption of a report.
The Council should be more actively involved in the monitoring phase, should be informed by the Commission in writing, for example in the form of a letter, of the outcome of the verification visits and should approve the closure of action plans in cases of serious deficiencies and first-time evaluations, on the basis of a Commission proposal.
(29)
It is essential that the European Parliament and the Council regularly hold discussions in order to raise awareness of the importance of the effective implementation of the Schengen acquis and encourage Member States to remedy the deficiencies identified, as appropriate.
In particular, the Council should exercise its political role in relation to the governance of the Schengen area by discussing the reports submitted by the Commission and by holding political discussions concerning the effective implementation of the Schengen acquis and proper functioning of the area without internal border control.
The Commission should provide adequate input to facilitate those discussions, including through the adoption of a comprehensive annual report covering the evaluations carried out during the previous year and the state of implementation of recommendations.
On the basis of that report and those results, the Council should hold horizontal discussions in order to contribute to the more efficient and swifter implementation of the recommendations and their correlated remedial actions.
(30)
The evaluation and monitoring mechanism established by this Regulation should fulfil a complementary function of monitoring the effectiveness of the practical implementation of Union policies through peer review.
The general power of the Commission to oversee the application of Union law under the control of the Court of Justice of the European Union through infringement procedures should not be affected.
(31)
The classification status of the evaluation and revisit reports should be ‘sensitive non-classified’ in accordance with the applicable security rules set out in Commission Decision (EU, Euratom) 2015/443 (10).
They should be classified as ‘RESTREINT UE/EU RESTRICTED’ within the meaning of Commission Decision (EU, Euratom) 2015/444 (11), where such a classification is required pursuant to Article 5(3) of that Decision or following a justified request by the evaluated Member State.
(32)
In view of the particular role entrusted to the European Parliament and to the national parliaments under the last sentence of Article 70 TFEU, as underlined in Article 12, point (c), of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) as regards the national parliaments, the Council and the Commission should inform the European Parliament and the national parliaments of the content and results of the evaluations.
In addition, if the Commission submits a proposal to amend this Regulation, the Council would, in accordance with Article 19(7), point (h), of its Rules of Procedure (12), consult the European Parliament in order to take into consideration its opinion, to the fullest extent possible, before adopting a final text.
(33)
The European Data Protection Supervisor was consulted in accordance with Article 42(1) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 and delivered an opinion on 27 July 2021 (13).
(34)
Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council (14) applies to the processing of personal data by the Member States when carrying out their responsibilities under this Regulation.
Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 applies to the processing of personal data by the institutions, bodies, offices and agencies of the Union when carrying out their responsibilities under this Regulation.
(10) Commission Decision (EU, Euratom) 2015/443 of 13 March 2015 on Security in the Commission (OJ L 72, 17.3.2015, p. 41).
(11) Commission Decision (EU, Euratom) 2015/444 of 13 March 2015 on the security rules for protecting EU classified information (OJ L 72, 17.3.2015, p. 53).
(12) Council Decision 2009/937/EU of 1 December 2009 adopting the Council’s Rules of Procedure (OJ L 325, 11.12.2009, p. 35).
(13) OJ C 337, 23.8.2021, p. 2.
(14) Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) (OJ L 119, 4.5.2016, p. 1).