Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

DRAFT EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION

on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive (EU) 2019/1153 of the European Parliament and of the Council, as regards access of competent authorities to centralised bank account registries through the single access point

Changed(COM(2021)0429 – C90000/2022C9-0338/2021 – 2021/0244(COD))

(Ordinary legislative procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

– having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2021)0429),

Changed– having regard to Article 294(2) and Article 87(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C90000/2022),(C9-0338/2021),

– having regard to Article 294(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

– having regard to Rule 59 of its Rules of Procedure,

– having regard to the opinion of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs,

Changed– having regard to the report of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (A90000/2022),(A9-0004/2023),

1. Adopts its position at first reading hereinafter set out;

2. Calls on the Commission to refer the matter to Parliament again if it replaces, substantially amends or intends to substantially amend its proposal;

3. Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.

Change 1

RemovedRecital 6 a (new): (6a) The mechanism on direct cross-border access of law enforcement authorities to centralised bank account registries through the single access point is based on the principle of mutual trust between the Member States and a presumption that Member States comply with Union law, the rule of law in accordance with Article 2 TEU and, in particular, with fundamental rights in accordance with Article 6 TEU, such as the right to privacy and data protection, which are essential elements of the area of freedom, security and justice within the Union.

AddedRecital 1: (1) Optimising and facilitating access to financial information is necessary to prevent, detect, investigate or prosecute serious crime, including terrorism. In particular, swift access to financial information is essential for carrying out effective criminal investigations and for successfully tracing and subsequently confiscating instrumentalities and proceeds of crime, in particular as part of investigations into organised crime.

RemovedSuch cross-border rules need the basis in national law in accordance with the obligations under Article 8 ECHR (right to privacy), as well that such searches shall be proportionate and used only if applicable in similar domestic situations to prevent forum shopping.

AddedRecital 5: (5) Considering the cross-border nature of organised crime, the financing of terrorism, and money laundering, as well as the importance of relevant financial information for the purposes of combating serious criminal offences, including by swiftly tracing, freezing and confiscating illegally obtained assets where possible and appropriate, authorities competent for the prevention, detection, investigation or prosecution of criminal offences designated in accordance with Directive (EU) 2019/1153 should be able to directly access and search the centralised bank account registries of other Member States through the BAR single access point put in place pursuant to Directive (EU) YYYY/XX.

AddedRecital 6: (6) The safeguards and limitations already established by Directive (EU) 2019/1153 should also apply in respect of the possibilities to access and search bank account information, through the BAR single access point, established by the present Directive. These safeguards and limitations include those concerning the limitation to the authorities that have the power to access and search bank account information, the purposes for which the access and search may be conducted, the types of information that are accessible and searchable while respecting the principle of data minimisation, requirements applicable to the staff of the designated competent authorities, the security of the data and the logging of access and searches.

AddedRecital 6 a (new): (6a) Enabling the competent authorities of one Member State to access and search the centralised bank account registries of other Member States through the BAR single access point is based on the presumption that Member States comply with Union law and respect the rule of law as enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union and fundamental rights as enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, such as the rights to privacy and to the protection of personal data. Where data accessed through the BAR single access point are used in the investigation and prosecution of criminal cases, the requirement for Member States to comply with fundamental rights standards and related obligations also entails a duty to ensure that the rights of suspected and accused persons are equally protected, including the right to an effective remedy and to a fair trial, which are essential elements of the area of freedom, security and justice within the Union. When using the BAR single access point, competent authorities are also to respect the fundamental rights and principles provided for in international law, in international agreements to which the Union or all the Member States are party, including the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, and in Member States’ constitutions.

AddedRecital 6 b (new): (6b) In a similar fashion to Directive (EU) 2019/1153, and as regards access to and the consultation of bank account information via the BAR single access point, when implementing this Directive, Member States should consider the nature, organisational status, role and prerogatives of the authorities and bodies established under national law as responsible for preventing, detecting, investigating or prosecuting criminal offences, including the existing mechanisms to protect financial systems from money laundering and terrorist financing.

AddedRecital 12: (12) The European Data Protection Supervisor was consulted in accordance with Article 42(1) of Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council and delivered its comments on 6 September 2021,

Directive (EU) 2019/1153

Change 2

ChangedArticle 1 – paragraph 1, Article 4 – paragraph 1 a:1a: 1a. Member States shall ensure that the competent national authorities designated pursuant to Article 3(1) have the power to access and search, directly and immediately, in accordance with national law,immediately bank account information in other Member States available through the bank account registers (BAR) single access point put in place pursuant to Article XX of Directive (EU) YYYY/XX [the new Anti-Money Laundering Directive] whenwhere those competent authorities have justified reasons to consider that there might be relevant bank account information in other Member States which is necessary for the performance of their tasks for the purposes of preventing, detecting, investigating or prosecuting a serious criminal offence or supporting a criminal investigation concerning a serious criminal offence, including the identification, tracing and freezing of the assets related to such investigation. / The gathering ofData datagathered underas thea firstresult subparagraphof shallaccessing beor proportionatesearching forbank theaccount purposeinformation ofthrough the proceedings, taking intoBAR accountsingle theaccess rightspoint ofunder the suspectedfirst orsubparagraph accusedshall person,be adequate and respectingrelevant for the factpurposes thatfor thewhich searchthey wouldare havesought beenand possibleshall undernot thebe sameexcessive conditionsfor inthose apurposes. similarMember domesticStates case.shall Theensure datathat gatheredthe shallcompetent beauthorities usedcan only forconduct thesearches purposeas forprovided whichfor itin wasthe sought.first /subparagraph Memberprovided Statesthat shallthe ensurecompetent that,national whenauthorities conductingwould cross-borderbe accessable andto searchingconduct forsuch informationsearches throughin the single point of accessnational toregistry bankunder accountthe registers,same theconditions competentin authoritiesa designatedsimilar bydomestic themcase. respectInformation theobtained proceduralby rightsmeans of individualsaccessing and comply with Union rulessearching onthe personalBAR datasingle protection.acces…

Change 3

RemovedSuch cross-border rules need the basis in national law in accordance with the obligations under Article 8 ECHR (right to privacy), as well that such searches shall be proportionate and used only if applicable in similar domestic situations to prevent forum shopping.

Added15.3.2022