EU to vote on CIA flights report
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A report critical of governments over CIA terror flights faces a close vote in the European Parliament.
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The European Parliament is set to hold a debate as it prepares to decide the fate of the incoming commission.
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European countries knew about U.S.  secret jails for terrorism suspects and have obstructed an  investigation into the transport and illegal detention of  prisoners, a draft European Parliament report said on Tuesday.
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The European Parliament on Wednesday approved a controversial report accusing Britain, Germany, Italy and other European nations of turning a blind eye to CIA flights transporting terrorism suspects to secret prisons in an apparent breach of EU human rights standards.
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The European Parliament prepares to vote on whether to endorse the new executive commission team.
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The European Union hopes to reach an  agreement with the United States on a new pact on sharing of  airline passenger data next Friday, the European Commission  said on Sunday.
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Many EU countries were aware of secret CIA jails and transfers of terror suspects, a report by MEPs says.
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STRASBOURG, France  - European lawmakers demanded   on Thursday that their governments reveal the location of   secret CIA prisons after U.S. President George Bush admitted   Washington held terror suspects in jails abroad.
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An inquiry by British police officers said it found no evidence that Britain allowed the CIA to use the country's airports to take terror suspects to other countries.The 18-month inquiry examined claims by the human rights group Liberty that such 'extraordinary rendition' flights chartered by the U.S. government through the CIA landed in Britain before spiriting away terror suspects.Liberty, which had requested the inquiry, rejected its findings after they were released Friday.Michael Todd, chief constable of Greater Manchester Police, agreed to investigate the allegations on behalf of the Association of Chief Police Officers. Read more
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EU and US negotiators strike a deal on sharing passenger information for transatlantic flights.
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The European Union hopes to reach a new agreement with the United States on sharing air passenger data next week after failing to do so before the previous pact expired, the European Commission said.
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A new airline passenger information sharing agreement between the EU and the United States aimed at thwarting terrorism will likely go into effect yet this summer following concessions from both sides this week.
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EU ministers on Friday backed plans to collect data on air travellers coming to Europe, a move which could force visitors to provide information three times before entering.
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The European Parliament is expected to endorse the proposed European Constitution in a vote in Wednesday.
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(InfoWorld) - The U.S. may be willing to give some ground in a dispute with European regulators over access to trans-Atlantic passenger data, although reaching a compromise before a July deadline remains uncertain. The issue of how long the U.S. holds onto passenger data has been one of the sticking points in the dispute, which threatens airlines' ability to carry passengers to the U.S. without violating U.S. or European law. "I anticipate that there may well be a decrease, and perhaps even a significant decrease, in the amount of time [the passenger data] is retained," said Hugo Teufel III, chief privacy officer for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, in a meeting with journalists in Paris on Thursday. The U.S. requires airlines to hand over 34 facts about each passenger traveling from Europe, including where and how their airline ticket was purchased. The U.S. says it needs the information to help identify terrorism suspects, but some European regulators have fiercely opposed sharing their citizens' data, citing concerns about privacy. A 2004 agreement on the matter was struck down by the European Court of Justice earlier this year, and an interim agreement will expire on July 31. If a new accord isn't reached before then over the "passenger name records" (PNRs), airlines face being sued in Europe for sharing the data, or being denied landing permission in the U.S. if they do not. "I believe that there will very likely be increased privacy protections with respect to the PNR data," Teufel said on Thursday. "Whether it happens before the end of July or after the end of July is very difficult to say." He cautioned that he is not directly involved in the discussions, and would not elaborate on what the increased privacy protections might be. It was unclear if the concessions had been communicated to the European Union or would prompt it to ease its position. European parliamentarians have also expressed other concerns with the PNR system, including the amount of data being collected and the ways it will be used. A spokesman for Franco Frattini, the E.U.'s commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security, said it would be inappropriate to comment on Teufel's remarks while the talks are ongoing. "We are in the midst of negotiations," the spokesman said via e-mail. Teufel is a political appointee responsible for privacy policies at the Department of Homeland Security. He was in Europe to meet with privacy representatives in France and Germany to gather feedback and smooth relations between the two sides. He sought to dispel what he characterized as misinformation about the PNR system. The U.S. does not ask about meal choices to identify potential Muslim travelers, he said, calling that "absolutely false." Asked if credit card data is collected, he said: "To my knowledge the department is not pushing for that." He acknowledged theÂ divisions between U.S. and European attitudes to privacy. "I think Europeans are beginning to have a better understanding of U.S. privacy and U.S. privacy laws. I don't think Europeans as a whole have a sufficient understanding now," he said. "I am not surprised when I hear from a European their often-held view that the U.S. has no privacy laws. That's just false. We do have privacy laws, we care about privacy. What we do have is a different approach to privacy and a different approach to government."
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The European Commission will propose tomorrow that all foreign travelers entering and leaving Europe, including U.S. citizens, should be fingerprinted. If approved by the European Parliament, the measure would mean that precisely identifying information on tens of millions of citizens will be added...
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European Union ambassadors approved a last-minute deal clinched on Friday with the United States on the transfer of personal data on transatlantic air passengers to U.S. authorities to help combat terrorism, an EU presidency spokesman said.