§ Mr. BeithTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with ministers of European Union countries concerning the issue of immunity of Europol officers; and if he will make a statement. [28848]
§ Mr. MichaelThe immunities which will be granted to Europol officers are set out in the Protocol on Privileges and Immunities of Europol, which was signed on 19 June 1997, following extensive discussions with all member states of the European Union at both ministerial and official level. The Protocol must be ratified by all member states before it enters into force. The United Kingdom will complete this process shortly: following debates in both Houses, an Order passed through the Privy Council on 17 December 1997.
Europol will not be an operational police force, and its staff will not be able to perform executive policing functions. Their role will generally be limited to the handling of information and the analysis of criminal intelligence in support of the law enforcement agencies of member states. The immunities that they will be given will apply only in situations where they are performing these official functions, and in all other situations they will be subject to the legal process in the normal way. The Government believe that the immunities which will be granted to Europol officers are appropriate for the tasks which they will undertake and are necessary for the proper functioning of the organisation. Were Europol's role to be extended beyond what is allowed under the present Convention, there is specific provision in the Protocol requiring the question of privileges and immunities of its staff to be reviewed.