§ Sir Richard BodyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the mechanism by which Her Majesty's Government can rescind participation in Schengen. [97527]
§ Mrs. RocheThe Protocol integrating the Schengen acquis into the framework of the European Union, annexed to the Treaties by the Treaty of Amsterdam, makes provision in Articles 4 and 5 for the participation of the United Kingdom in the Schengen acquis and in its development. Once the United Kingdom has chosen to participate, to that extent the normal arrangements of the Treaties apply, and it would not be possible to rescind participation. The United Kingdom is otherwise not bound by the Schengen acquis. My right hon. Friend, the Home Secretary, submitted on 26 May 1999, an application on behalf of the United Kingdom to participate in certain provisions of the Schengen acquis, a copy of which is available in the Library.
§ Sir Richard BodyTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department from which elements of Schengen Information System data, in accordance with Section 13 of the Commission Opinion on the request by the UK to take part in certain provisions of the Schengen acquis, the Commission recommends the UK remain excluded from access. [97522]
§ Mrs. RocheThe Commission Opinion refers to the need to study the feasibility of limiting the United Kingdom's access to data held under Article 96 of the Schengen Implementing Convention. This reflects the terms of the United Kingdom to participate in certain provisions of the Schengen acquis; we requested that we should be allowed not to enter or receive such data, which is related to the refusal of admission to third country nationals at the external frontier. This is because we are not seeking to participate in the external frontier control provisions of the Schengen acquis.