Council of Europe Convention on an integrated safety, security, and service approach at football matches and other sports events (CETS No 218): authorising Member States to become party
PURPOSE: to authorise Member States to become parties, in the interest of the European Union, to the Council of Europe Convention on an integrated safety, security and service approach at football matches and other sports events.
PROPOSED ACT: Council Decision.
ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: the Council can adopt the act only if the European Parliament has approved it.
BACKGROUND: the Council of Europe Convention on an integrated safety, security and service approach at football matches and other sports events was adopted at Saint-Denis on 3 July 2016 and has been open for signature and ratification since then. It aims to provide a safe, secure and welcoming environment at football matches and other sports events.
Article 11 of the Convention entitled ‘international co-operation’ obliges the Parties to set up a national football information point (NFIP) to act as the designated sole conduit for exchanging all information and intelligence regarding football matches with an international dimension and for arranging other matters of international police co-operation.
Paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 of Article 11 of the Convention, which concern national football information points, may affect common rules or alter their scope within the meaning of Article 3(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), as those provisions coincide with certain obligations contained in Council Decision 2002/348/JHA, which specifies the tasks of NFIPs and sets out rules for cooperation between them, in particular with respect to exchanging police information.
The Union cannot become party to the Convention, as only States may be parties thereto. Member States should therefore be authorised to sign and ratify the Convention, acting jointly in the interest of the Union, in respect of those parts of the Convention that fall under the exclusive competence of the Union.
CONTENT: the draft Council decision aims to authorise Member States to sign and ratify, in the interests of the Union, the Council of Europe Convention on an integrated safety, security and service approach at football matches and other sports events (CETS No. 218) in respect of Article 11(2), (3) and (4) of the Convention.
Union support for the Convention is important for combating violence related to sport events and would complement the efforts already made in this field through support to projects under the sport chapter of the Erasmus+ programme.
The United Kingdom and Ireland are bound by Council Decision 2002/348/JHA, and are therefore taking part in the adoption of the decision.