Cross-border crime is now estimated to be running at Ecu 60 billion a year. New groups of sophisticated criminals take advantage of electronic means of communication and exploit differences in national legislation. This month MEPs endorsed a new EU Action plan to combat such international crime.
The plan involves much closer co-operation between national investigative forces. Each member state will designate a new national body responsible for strengthening links between countries.
Unlike the USA, there is no European federal body with investigative powers to operate throughout the 15 member states. In view of national sensitivities over criminal matters, Europol is the embryonic European body responsible for co-ordinating co-operation between the different national police forces. However, it is essentially a data-gathering organisation; MEPs would like it to take on a more operational role.
Charlotte Cederschiold (S, EPP) singled out co-operation arrangements between Nordic countries as a model for the way forward. In Scandinavia, the police, judiciary, customs services and coastguard plug into the same computer system and there is close co-operation in the fight against criminals. Her resolution, adopted by Parliament, calls on member states to ratify various international conventions, and to improve co-operation in such areas as tackling money laundering, fraud in electronic transfers and credit card fraud.
MEPs also want the EU to follow US practice and use informers who operate across borders. In addition, there is support for joint investigative multi-national teams and for a US-style European witness-protection programme. But there are differences not only in the definition of crimes but also in procedures between the member states, and this can hamper operations. Recently a multi-million pound customs fraud trial collapsed in the UK, following the failure of the authorities to force a key witness from Spain to attend the proceedings. A new European Judicial Network will facilitate closer co-operations.
MEPs are highly critical of the snail's pace at which co-operation is developing. Many believe this is due to procedures based on co-ordination between national authorities, rather than creating a pan-European body to tackle the problem. This trend was confirmed by the Amsterdam Treaty. Indeed all the proposals approved by Parliament this month were brought in under national intergovernmental arrangements.
The Commissioner responsible for tackling fraud, Anita Gradin, did, however, see the new moves as a step forward. She emphasised that the Commission would play a key role in co-ordination. The EU's own antifraud squad UCLAF, responsible for tackling fraud against the EU's budget, was, she said, now extending its areas of activity and investigating reports of the illegal smuggling of environmentally-dangerous materials.
Bringing in the Schengen arrangements for free movement, coupled with safeguards such as a computerised European system of tracing wanted criminals, as provided for in the Amsterdam Treaty, should also help.