| Author (Person) | Smith, Emily |
|---|---|
| Series Title | European Voice |
| Series Details | Vol.11, No.42, 24.11.05 |
| Publication Date | 24/11/2005 |
| Content Type | News |
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By Emily Smith Date: 24/11/05 The European Commission wants to revamp seven existing EU laws to give itself a greater say in setting criminal sanctions, it emerged on Wednesday (23 November). Following a September European Court of Justice ruling that legislation on environmental crime should be set at EU and not national level, the Commission has published a communication setting out the implications this has for EU law in general. Specifically, it is proposing changing seven laws from 'framework decisions', which leave sanctions up to member states, to directives, allowing the Commission to set EU-wide sanctions. The paper says the Commission should be able to set minimum criminal sanctions, of up to ten years in prison, for areas where it thinks this is necessary. "When for a given sector, the Commission considers that criminal law measures are required in order to ensure that Community law is fully effective, these measures may...include the actual principle of resorting to criminal penalties, the definition of the offence...the nature and level of the criminal penalties applicable, or other aspects relating to criminal law," it says. The Commission hopes EU governments and MEPs will agree to make all seven decisions into directives with a minimum of fuss. "We don't want to start negotiations again," said a Commission official. The legislation selected for review is relatively uncontroversial, with the exception of a decision on intellectual property rights, which is in some countries a civil rather than a criminal matter. The precedent set by giving the Commission a greater say in setting sanctions may however worry some member states, and has already begun to cause ripples in the European Parliament. Leader of the UK conservatives in Parliament, Timothy Kirkhope, called the September court ruling an "intrusion" and a "massive extension of [Commission] powers". Following a European Court of Justice ruling in September 2005 that legislation on environmental crime should be set at EU and not national level, the European Commission published a communication setting out the implications this had for EU law in general. Specifically, the Commission was proposing changing seven laws from 'framework decisions', which leave sanctions up to Member States, to directives, allowing the European Commission to set EU-wide sanctions. |
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| Source Link | http://www.european-voice.com/ |
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| Subject Categories | Environment, Law, Politics and International Relations |
| Countries / Regions | Europe |
