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A UK request for access to shared European Union crime and illegal migration data has reportedly been rejected in a blow to Keir Starmer’s hopes of a post-Brexit relations “reset”.
British negotiators have been hoping to reach a deal on gaining access to the Schengen Information System (SIS), a vital tool for sharing police alerts across borders within the area where 29 countries have abolished passport controls.
However, European officials were reported by the Times to have ruled out allowing access to it and to the bloc’s centralised fingerprinting system, Eurodac, which stores information on illegal migrants.
Access to the records would be a significant boost to attempts by the Labour government to clear Britain’s asylum claims and appeals backlog at a time when political opponents on the populist right are on the rise.
The prime minister suggested last year at an Interpol annual general assembly in Glasgow that EU leaders had shown an interest in giving the UK access to the intelligence database used to identify people seeking asylum.
Asked whether he could detect enthusiasm from EU leaders about giving the UK access to Eurodac data as part of a new security deal, he told journalists: “Yes, there is an appetite to work more closely with us on this. Because look, these are shared challenges.”
Daniel Moylan, the Conservative transport spokesperson, said on Monday that the prime minister had cast his reset of relations with the EU as a “magic bullet” to deliver on Labour’s manifesto pledge to “smash the gangs” when it came to illegal Channel crossings.
“It’s not working. He needs to start taking action in the UK and stop creeping to Brussels,” Lord Moylan added.
A UK government spokesperson said: “We are not providing a running commentary on our discussions with the EU. These are ongoing and cover a wide range of issues.
“Together we want to build a safer, more secure and more prosperous UK and we have been clear that we will always act in the national interest to secure the best outcomes for the UK.”
The European Commission has been approached for comment.
In the absence of a deal on giving access to Eurodac and Schengen data, one area of potential progress revolves around work and travel freedoms. The EU is prepared to make major concessions in negotiations to allow British and European 18- to 30-year-olds to travel and work freely, the Guardian reported last month.
However, there have been suggestions that figures in the British government have made access to EU databases a “red line” in negotiations over such a youth mobility scheme.
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The previous UK government signed a deal earlier last year for Britain work more closely with the EU’s border agency to stop small boats crossing the Channel.
But the lack of access to the Eurodac fingerprinting system – which stores more than 7m fingerprint records and was lost to Britain with the ending of the Brexit transition period in December 2020 – limits potential collaboration.
Access would help returns by proving individuals had rightful residence in other countries.
Cooperation to tackle illegal migration, together with counter terror cooperation, is one of the three pillars that the UK government has been working on as part of a touted “reset” of UK-EU relations. The others are on foreign policy and security cooperation and growth and trade cooperation.
