The Amsterdam Treaty gives citizens additional rights of free movement in the EU. Articles, dealing with free movement, visas, asylum, immigration, refugees, judicial co0operatipon and related matters will be included in the European Community Treaty. The EU is to adopt measures within five years to ensure freedom of movement, together with "flanking measures". The flanking measures will deal with issues like control at the external borders of the EU, AND combating crime within the EU.
These matters are to be decided in the Council Of Ministers, by unanimity for the first five years, after which they should be decided by majority vote. The Schengen agreement, which allows free movement between continental EU countries, is brought in the Treaty, though the UK and Ireland are allowed to opt out and retain their common travel area.
Extracts from the Treaty:
Objective
(A new objective of the Union is) to maintain and develop the Union as an area of freedom, security and justice, in which the free movement of persons is assured in conjunction with appropriate measures with respect to external border controls, asylum, immigration and the prevention and combating of crime. (TEU, art 2)
...(A new objective of the Union is) to maintain and develop the Union as an area of freedom, security and justice by developing common action among the Member-States in the fields of police and judicial co0opreation in criminal matters and by preventing and combating racism and xenophobia.That objective shall be achieved by preventing and combating crime, organised or otherwise, in particular terrorism, trafficking in persons and offences against children, illicit drug trafficking and illicit arms trafficking, corruption and fraud, through closer co0operation between police forces... directly and through Europol.. (TEU, art 29)Police co-operation:
Common action in the field of police co-operation shall include operational co-operation between the competent authorities, including the police, customs and other specialised law enforcement services of the Member States in relation to the prevention, detection and investigation of criminal offences; the collection, storage, processing, analysis and exchange of relevant information, ... in particular through Europol, subject to appropriate provisions on the protection of personal data; co-operation and joint initiatives..., the common evaluation of investigation techniques... (for the) detection of serious forms of organised crime. (TEC, art 30)
Common action on judicial co-operation in criminal matters shall include ...facilitating extradition between Member States... (TEC, art 31)
Five-year programme
In order to establish progressively an area of freedom, security and justice, the Council shall adopt within ... five years ... measures aimed at ensuring the free movement of persons ... in conjunction with ... measures with respect to external borders controls, asylum and immigration, ... measures in the field of judicial co-operation in civil matters ... measures to encourage and strengthen administrative co-operation, ... (and) measures in the field of police and judicial co-operation in criminal matters aimed at a high level of security by preventing and combating crime within the Union ... (TEC, art 61).
The Council shall, within... five years...adopt measures with a view to ensuring...the absence of any controls on persons, be they citizens of the Union or nationals of third countries, when crossing internal borders.
The council shall establish standards(for)..carrying out checks on persons at such borders, rules on visas for intended stays of no more then three months...(and)measures setting out the conditions under which the nationals of third countries shall have the freedom of travel within the territory of the Member Sates during a period of no more than three months.(TEC, art 62)Asylum
The Council ... shall, within ...five years ...adopt measures on asylum ... (including) criteria and mechanisms for determining which Member State is responsible for considering an application ...; minimum standards on the reception of asylum seekers in Member States; minimum standards (for qualification) ... as refugees; minimum standards on procedures in Member States for granting or withdrawing refugee status, (and) ... minimum standards for giving temporary protection to displaced persons ... who cannot return to their country of origin ...; promoting a balance of effort between Member States in receiving and bearing the consequences of receiving refugees and displaced persons.
Measures on immigration policy(regarding )...entry and residence...family reunion, ..illegal immigration...(and on)the rights and conditions under which nationals of third countries who are legally resident in a Member State ,may reside in other Member States.(TEC, art 63)
This title shall not affect...the maintenance of law and order and the safeguarding of internal security.(TEC, art 64)Common Travel area
The United Kingdom and Ireland may continue to make arrangements between themselves relating to the movement of persons between their territories ("the Common Travel Area")...
The other Member States shall be entitled to exercise at their frontiers or at any point of entry ...such controls on persons seeking to enter their territory from the United Kingdom..., or from Ireland...(protocol no 3)
Review by national authorities
Action in the field of police co-operation... including activities of Europol, shall be subject to appropriate judicial review by the competent national authorities in accordance with rules applicable in each Member State. (Declaration 7)
Views of the European Parliament
Parliament recognises that there has been some progress in those areas of justice and home affairs remaining subject to intergovernmental co-operation, and calls on the Council and/or the Member States to take decisions as soon as possible on more effective common approaches towards fighting organised and international crime; to establish working relations with Parliament that will allow consultations to run smoothly in this field; to improve the legal protection of Union citizens and, in particular, to deliver the requisite declarations so that appeals can be made to the European Court of Justice under the preliminary ruling procedure; to prevent loopholes in legal protection arising in the national implementation of Council acts.
Parliament calls in particular on the council to take speedy decisions to ensure that the general rules of the Community method will be applied, as soon as possible, to the...area of freedom, security and justice, and to enable further development on Community lines of Schengen(body of law).
Parliament also calls for the governments if Denmark, Ireland and the united Kingdom to take part from the earliest stages in the Community measures in this field.