Crossing at external borders of the States, Schengen cooperation. Annual reports 1998

The European Parliament adopted the resolution by Mr Carlos COELHO (EPP-ED, P) which seeks to ensure that the Schengen Information System and computer systems is operated with due respect for human rights and the principles of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights. The resolution also calls on the UK and Ireland to fully participate in the Schengen system and thus scrap border controls. MEPs want the Schengen Information System to be managed by a separate agency financed by the EU under the responsibilities of the Commission. The Parliament calls for the Schengen rules on confidentiality of documents to be replaced with rules on public access to documents and wishes it to be informed of documents excluded from public access. It urges the Council and the Commission to submit an annual report on the measures adopted in the area of freedom security and justice. In the context of the integration of Article 2, paragraph 2 of the Schengen Convention, the Commission is invited to include in its proposal rules on the prior consultation of the Council, approval of temporary border controls only for a limited period (30 days) and a review of the proportionality of the controls and conditions for the extension of that period. The Parliament calls on the Council: - to ensure that Parliament is able to fully participate in the debate on measures to remedy the shortcomings in the field of police co-operation and requests the Council to ensure consistency in the practical rules to be applied under the Schengen Convention; - to consult the Parliament in sufficient time and with a reasonable deadline on its framework decisions, decisions and Conventions; - to adopt a legally binding instrument on the data protection standards to be applied in the third pillar; - to adopt uniform standards, procedures and powers and a separate budget for the operation of the single supervisory body, under the supervision of the European Parliament, in repsect of its activities pursuant to the three conventions (Schengen, Europol and Customs Use) and to ensure the respect of the data protection standards. The Parliament calls for the Schengen Information System to be managed within the EU Framework by a separate agency, financed from the EU budget, and for the establishment of a Community (Union) information system under the responsibility of the Commission, which would be a single Computer network system for the data received under the three conventions mentioned above. Lastly, the Parliament calls for the membership of the candidate countries to be subject only to the political acceptance of the Schengen acquis and the development of the necessary policy instruments to implement that acquis and as was the case on the occasion of the previous accession, for the lifting of internal borders for the free movement of persons to be the subject of a separate and subsequent decision of the Council, acting on a proposal from the Commission and after consultation of the Parliament.�