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The Guardian
05-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
UK access to EU crime and illegal migration data reportedly denied
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 spokesman, 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. Sign up to Headlines Europe A digest of the morning's main headlines from the Europe edition emailed direct to you every week day after newsletter promotion 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 part of the three pillars which 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.
Gulf Insider
25-03-2025
- Politics
- Gulf Insider
British Chat Forums Shutter To Avoid New Internet Policing Law
British chat forums are shutting themselves down rather than face regulatory burdens recently applied to internet policing laws. On March 17, the United Kingdom's Online Safety Act, a law that regulates internet spaces, officially kicked into force. The law means that online platforms must immediately start putting in place measures to protect people in the UK from criminal activity with far-reaching implications for the internet. However, for some forums—from cyclists, hobbyists, and hamster owners, to divorced father support and more—the regulatory pressure is proving too much, and its myriad of rules are causing chat forums that have been operating for decades, in some cases, to call it a day. Conservative Peer Lord Daniel Moylan told The Epoch Times by email that 'common sense suggests the sites least likely to survive will be hobby sites, community sites, and the like.' The Act—which was celebrated as the world-first online safety law—was designed to ensure that tech companies take more responsibility for the safety of their users. For example, social media platforms, including user-to-user service providers, have the duty to proactively police harmful illegal content such as revenge and extreme pornography, sex trafficking, harassment, coercive or controlling behavior, and cyberstalking. But what the government calls 'small but risky services' which are often forums, have to submit illegal harms risk assessments to the Online Safety Act's regulator, Ofcom, by March 31. Ofcom first published its illegal harm codes of practice and guidance in December 2024 and had given providers three months to carry out the assignment. It was given powers under the law and warned that those who fail to do so may face enforcement action. 'We have strong enforcement powers at our disposal, including being able to issue fines of up to 10 percent of turnover or £18 million ($23 million)—whichever is greater—or to apply to a court to block a site in the UK in the most serious cases,' said Ofcom. Some of the rules for owners of these sites—which are often operated by individuals —include keeping written records of their risk assessments, detailing levels of risk, and assessing the 'nature and severity of potential harm to individuals.' While terrorism and child sexual exploitation may be more straightforward to assess and mitigate, offenses such as coercive and controlling behavior and hate offenses are more challenging to manage with forums that have thousands of users. LFGSS (London Fixed Gear and Single Speed), a popular cycling forum and resource for nearly two decades, shut down in December. 'We're done … we fall firmly into scope, and I have no way to dodge it,' the site said, adding that the law 'makes the site owner liable for everything that is said by anyone on the site they operate.' 'The act is too broad, and it doesn't matter that there's never been an instance of any of the proclaimed things that this act protects adults, children, and vulnerable people from … the very broad language and the fact that I'm based in the UK means we're covered,' it said. Dee Kitchen, the Microcosm forum software developer that was used to power 300 online communities including LFGSS, said he deleted them all on March 16, a day before the law kicked in. More recently the Hamster Forum shut down. On March 16, it wrote that while the forum has 'always been perfectly safe, we were unable to meet the compliance.' The resource forum dadswithkids for single dads, and fathers going through divorce or separation—and also teaches how to maintain relationships with their children, also shut down. UK users are also being blocked from accessing sites hosted abroad. The hosts of the forum, hosted in Finland, said to ensure compliance with international regulations while avoiding any legal risks associated with the Act, it has made the difficult decision to block UK access. 'These measures pave the way for a UK-controlled version of the 'Great Firewall,' granting the government the ability to block or fine websites at will under broad, undefined, and constantly shifting terms of what is considered 'harmful' content,' it said. Click here to read more…
