Archive
Data protection: 80% of national authorities underfunded, EU bodies “unable to fulfil legal duties”
It won’t come as a surprise to anyone familiar with the work of data protection authorities (DPAs): they are chronically underfunded and lack the staff and resources to do their jobs properly. Figures released earlier this month show the scale of the problem for national authorities, and EU authorities have taken the unprecedented step of calling on the European Parliament not to approve the budget proposed for them for 2023 by the European Commission. Read More
EU: AI Act: Council Presidency seeks more secrecy over police use of AI technology
The Czech Presidency of the Council has inserted new provisions into the proposed AI Act that would make it possible to greatly limit the transparency obligations placed on law enforcement authorities using "artificial intelligence" technologies. A new "specific carve-out for sensitive operational data" has been added to a number of articles. If the provisions survive the negotiations, the question then becomes: what exactly counts as "sensitive operational data"? And does the carve-out concern just the data itself, or the algorithms and systems it feeds as well? Read More
EU: AI Act: Council Legal Service says police cooperation legal basis “is not justified”
The Council Legal Service (CLS) is of the opinion that one of the legal bases used in the proposed Artificial Intelligence Act - an EU treaty provision governing police cooperation measures - "is not justified", and the Act can only rely on provisions relating to the internal market and data protection. Read More
Using AI tools to predict migration flows will lead to human rights abuses and must cease
Along with a group of human rights organisations and academic experts, we have signed an open letter to an EU-funded research project, ITFlows, which is developing a tool to "predict migration flows" and "detect risks of tension related to migration". The letter calls on the consortium to "immediately halt the use of the EUMigraTool and stop pursuing the use of any and all technologies that can be used in securitisating migration, and criminalising movement and solidarity with people on the move." Read More
UK-Greece: Bilateral cooperation against migrant smuggling
Information released by the Home Office and Crown Prosecution Service in response to freedom of information requests gives some indication of the scale and scope of cooperation under the UK-Greece Joint Action Plan on migration and 'Project Invigor', "the UK’s organised immigration crime taskforce set up to target the criminal networks behind people smuggling impacting on the UK." Read More
EU: Draft Council conclusions and member state comments on the European integrated border management strategy
Three internal Council documents on the forthcoming multiannual policy cycle on European integrated border management: comments from the member states on the European Commission's policy document published in May, and an initial and amended set of draft Council conclusions on the forthcoming policy cycle. Read More
Meeting Report Second Meeting Frontex-Morocco Comité Mixte
Heavily censored report from the second meeting of the Frontex-Morocco Comité Mixte in October 2020. Read More
Meeting report: Frontex-Morocco Comité Mixte – 1st Meeting
Heavily censored report from the first meeting of the Frontex-Morocco Comité Mixte in October 2019. Read More
Grant agreement number – 958029 – Safe Journey
Grant agreement for the Safe Journey project. Heavily redacted. Read More
Grant agreement number – 958054 – AMIF SHABABUNA
Grant agreement for the Shababuna "information campaign" project. Heavily-redacted. Read More