The Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) Council was held in Luxembourg on 5 and 6 June 2008. My right hon. Friend the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice; my right hon. Friend the Attorney-General; the Scottish Solicitor-General, Frank Mulholland, and I attended on behalf of the United Kingdom. The following issues were discussed:

The Commission gave an update on the revised timetable for delivery of the second generation of the Schengen Information System (SIS II). Member states reaffirmed their commitment to the project but stressed the importance of the Commission delivering on time.

The Council Secretariat reported some minor delays in the implementation of the SIS Communication Network and stated that better preparation from Member states would ensure that there were no further delays.

The Council agreed a compromise text on the Returns Directive, which could enable a first reading agreement providing it is approved by the European Parliament later this month. The UK has not opted in to this directive.

Discussion continued on the directive for Beneficiaries of International Protection. Member states could not reach consensus on the scope of the directive and the qualifying period for long-term residence. The presidency concluded that there would be no further attempts to secure agreement under the Slovenian presidency.

The Commission supported calls for EU action to resettle refugees from Iraq in principle, although they wanted United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) involvement as they were concerned about resettling people directly from Iraqi territory. The UK noted its own efforts in this area and supported the involvement of more Member states in resettlement, but stated it must be a permanent solution, not just a temporary humanitarian evacuation. The incoming French presidency said that it would consider pursuing further EU resettlement activity.

The Council reached a general approach on the package of Prüm-related legal instruments, which provide an improved mechanism for the sharing of DNA, fingerprint and vehicle registration data for the purposes of preventing, investigating and prosecuting serious crime. The Commission underlined its support.

The EU Counter Terrorism Co-ordinator introduced his reports on the implementation of the EU counter-terrorism strategy and action plan, emphasising the importance of technical assistance to third countries and of information exchange. He stated that radicalisation and recruitment was the main priority in the next six months and urged the Commission to issue its communication on this subject as quickly as possible. The Commission confirmed that it would do so. Member states welcomed the work of the co-ordinator and supported his recommendations. The UK particularly welcomed the focus on radicalisation and recruitment and prioritisation of work with Sahel/North Africa and Pakistan. The UK had launched its national strategy on Prevent the previous week, and would share its experience in leading the workstream on communications. The presidency noted that the new ad hoc Council group on information exchange would contribute to work on counter-terrorism.

The Council endorsed the EU-Australia passenger name record agreement and the Commission remarked that the Australian PNR agreement should be a reference point for future PNR agreements.

The presidency reported on the successful outcome of negotiations with the European Parliament about the proposal for a directive on the protection of the environment through criminal law.

The presidency outlined the background to the proposal to amend the Ship Source Pollution Directive to include criminal penalties for breaches of the rules.

The Council reached a general approach on the framework decision on the enforcement of decisions rendered in absentia. Many delegations intervened fully to support the compromise agreement. The Commission stressed that the instrument must come into effect without delay and called on Member states to lift parliamentary reservations as quickly as possible. They noted that Parliament’s opinion was still due and that the form must be finalised by Justice and Home Affairs counsellors. The UK and other delegations warmly congratulated the presidency on their work on this initiative.

The UK welcomed the progress made on the draft Eurojust Council decision and supported the overall package proposed on Articles 5a, 9a-9g, 12 and 13 concerning: on-call co-ordination within Eurojust; the powers of national members; the establishment of a Eurojust national co-ordination system; and the exchange of information, noting that it struck the right balance. With the exception of one member state, which retained a reserve on article 9, all could accept the compromise text and the presidency therefore concluded that a general approach had been reached. The presidency also concluded that the outstanding reserve could be dealt with in a recital to be discussed at a later date.

The Council agreed a compromise package on a number of aspects of the proposed maintenance regulation. In particular, to accommodate UK concerns, it was agreed that the applicable law rules should be removed from the regulation and that those Member states that wish to apply such rules will use the optional protocol to the recently agreed Hague convention on maintenance. The UK confirmed that this solution removed the main obstacle to future UK participation in the adopted regulation.

It has been accepted that it will not be possible to agree Rome III—choice of law in divorce—in its current form as there is no unanimity in the Council. It was agreed that there should be a period of reflection to explore how work in this area can be taken forward. One option that will be considered will be the use of enhanced co-operation.

The presidency provided a report on the progress that had been made on e-justice and the priorities for future work. This was followed by a presentation from the Commission of a recent communication which sets out a strategy for e-justice work including proposals for how this will be financed.

The presidency reported on the implementation of the JHA external relations strategy. The Commission said there would be a review of the external strategy under the French presidency. The third report, due out in 2009, would be the basis for a new strategy. The incoming French presidency confirmed that implementation of this strategy would be a priority over the next 18 months. The presidency also reported on the EU-Russia JHA ministerial troika and EU-Ukraine ministerial troika.

Greece outlined the challenges posed by high levels of asylum applications and illegal immigration. They welcomed EU financial assistance but would prefer increased burden sharing. Priorities also included more work in countries of origin; information on legal migration opportunities; and more work on readmission agreements. Some member states offered practical assistance, but emphasised the need to uphold the integrity of the Dublin system and opposed any form of intra-EU resettlement. Further discussion on migration challenges at the EU border states will take place under the French presidency.

The Rome I regulation on choice of law in contracts was formally adopted without discussion. The UK did not opt in to this proposal, but the Government are consulting with a view to accepting the measure post-adoption.

Over lunch there was a discussion of the proposal for an EU PNR agreement, with the presidency seeking views on what member states would wish to achieve under the incoming French presidency. All agreed that adoption of the measure would not be possible this year, leaving the possibility that it would have to happen under the Lisbon treaty if that were to enter into force in 2009. The UK urged progress during the French presidency. The Commission wanted to press ahead with discussion at both a technical level as well as politically.

Member states also congratulated the presidency on the work of the interior future group, considering ideas for inclusion in the new JHA work programme when the current programme expires at the end of 2009. Migration was stressed by many as the top priority for future work in JHA.