The Lisbon Treaty expands considerably the areas of responsibility of the European Parliament as co-legislator. Perhaps the domain of Justice, Freedom and Security is, constitutionally, the most sensitive and important in its direct impact on our lives as citizens. However while the “ordinary legislative procedure” will be the norm there are, as we shall see below, arrangements specific to this policy domain. The ratification of the Lisbon Treaty has immediate implications for the work of the Parliament as the Treaty enters into force on the 1st December. This coincides with the Swedish Presidency agreeing a report on the “Stockholm Programme” on the 30th November for submission to the European Council under the current treaties. This Programme will be decided under the “Third Pillar” intergovernmental rules under which the Parliament has no legislative roll. To complicate matters there is a series of legislative third pillar proposals going through at the same time. Parliament has asked that these be withdrawn and resubmitted under the Lisbon co-decision rules.

The Stockholm Programme.

The Stockholm Programme defines the framework for EU police and customs cooperation, rescue services, criminal and civil law cooperation, asylum, migration and visa policy for the period 2010-2014. The Swedish Presidency presented a first draft of the Stockholm Programme in October after bilateral talks with Member States that wished to give their views. Since October the programme has been revised at ambassador level in Coreper. The Council will consider the updated programme before it goes on to the Heads of State and Government at the European Council on 10-11 December. The European Parliament debated and voted by 487 votes to 122, with 49 abstentions on its vision of the future priorities for justice, freedom and security on the 25th instant. This resolution was debated with national parliaments’ representatives at a joint parliamentary meeting the previous week.

Among the priorities of Parliament is the need for legal remedies for victims of crime, especially human trafficking and gender violence. A Directive and a European strategy need to be introduced to tackle violence against women and child abuse.  It also highlights the risk of discrimination and racist crime faced by ethnic minorities and calls for legislation on hate crime. One area of particular sensitivity amongst party groupings is the recognition of same sex unions, ensuring non-discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation. Care is required that measures to protect the public against terrorism and organised crime should be proportionate.  Priority should be given to safeguarding the rights of victims of terrorism and providing financial compensation. Geography played a part in the emphasis placed on Member States' capacities for receiving asylum-seekers. Those MEP’s from southern states wanted a system of "compulsory and irrevocable solidarity" set up between states.  Migrants must have access to justice, housing, education and healthcare, adds the resolution.
There are also calls for minimum standards for prisons and detention conditions and a common set of prisoners' rights in the EU, with compensation for those unjustly detained or convicted. EU funding should be provided to build new detention facilities in Member States affected by prison overcrowding. Laws are needed to make it easier to conduct criminal proceedings in a different Member State and to resolve conflicts of jurisdiction between those states. An instrument is needed to deal with the admissibility of evidence in criminal proceedings in cross-border cases. Other demands include clearer and tighter limits on exchanges of personal data between Member States and the use of EU data registers. The Commission is invited to step up its work on European contract law, with a view to adopting a common frame of reference to enable parties to a contract to choose to have it governed by EU rules. This may prove a controversial proposition.

These are the guide lines which will guide the Parliament when debating future Commission proposals.

Special procedures in the area of justice, freedom and security.

As mentioned above there are specific provisions applying in this area. These were highlighted in a presentation by a representative of the Parliament’s legal service to the Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Committee on Monday 5 October last. In future, the co-decision procedure, renamed the "ordinary legislative procedure", will apply to all areas of decision making within this policy area. Matters which were previously dealt with under the third pillar, such as judicial cooperation in criminal matters and police cooperation, will be treated under the same kind of rules as those of the single market. European Union and Member State measures in this area will be subject to the judicial review of the Court of Justice. As regards judicial cooperation in criminal matters and police cooperation, the Commission will share its right of initiative with the Council when one quarter of Member States (a total of 7 Member States at present) agree to initiate legislation. Very importantly there is the possibility for a Member State to apply the "emergency brake" in respect of the adoption of measures on judicial cooperation in criminal matters which "would affect fundamental aspects of [the Member State's] criminal justice system". The draft measure would be referred to the European Council; if there was no consensus at that level, the Member States who wished to may initiate enhanced cooperation.

An evolving domain.

The European Commission has signalled that it will be active in implementing the policy agenda set out in the “Stockholm Programme”. For its part the Parliament has indicated its criteria when legislating on these sensitive issues of justice, freedom and security.