§ Lord Lamont of Lerwickasked Her Majesty's Government:
What power of inquiry would be given to Eurojust, a permanent unit of magistrates, proposed by the Belgian Presidency of the European Union to combat international crime; and whether the power of inquiry, as put forward by the Belgian Presidency, would include a power to order detention or extradition. [HL94]
§ The Minister of State, Home Office (Lord Rooker)Eurojust is an initiative included in the Conclusions of the European Council in Tampere on 15 and 16 October 1999, and the draft decision is currently being negotiated. The objective of Eurojust is to improve co-operation between national prosecutors and aid national criminal investigations into serious organised crime. Eurojust's power of inquiry would go no further than to aid investigations and prosecutions carried out by national authorities. It will be able to facilitate, but not insist upon, cross-border cooperation. It would not have the power to order detention or to order extradition, nor would it have the power to prosecute.