Justice and Home Affairs Council, 06-07/12/2018, 6-7 December 2018

Main results

Home Affairs (Thursday 6 December)

Today we have made good progress on a number of priority issues in the areas of migration and security. We also looked at the future financing of the tools we have been developing, and discussed the priorities in the area of Justice and Home Affairs for the next multiannual financial framework. Herbert Kickl, Minister of the Interior of Austria

Terrorist content online

The Council agreed its negotiating position on the proposed regulation on preventing the dissemination of terrorist content online.

The proposed rules apply to hosting service providers offering services in the EU, whether or not they have their main establishment in the member states. These providers will have to remove terrorist content or disable access to it within one hour from receiving a removal order from authorities.

• Terrorist content online: Council adopts negotiating position on new rules to prevent dissemination (press release, 06/12/2018)

European Border and Coast Guard

The Council today agreed a partial general approach on a proposal on the European Border and Coast Guard, covering the provisions linked to return and cooperation with third countries. This agreement does not allow for the start of negotiations with the European Parliament, and is on the understanding that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

The proposed rules will allow Frontex to provide technical and operational support to member states in return operations.  They will also contribute to strengthening cooperation with third countries, by giving the agency wider scope for action and not limiting its possibilities for cooperation to neighbouring countries.

• European Border and Coast Guard: Council reaches partial agreement on returns and cooperation with third countries (press release, 06/12/2018)

Migrant smuggling

Ministers approved a comprehensive and operational set of measures with a law enforcement focus to step up the fight against migrant smuggling networks. This follows a call by EU leaders at their meeting in October.

The objective is to disrupt migrant smuggling networks both inside and outside the EU, taking into account their high level of adaptability and the increased interlinking of different criminal activities.

• Migrant smuggling: Council approves a set of measures to fight smuggling networks (press release, 06/12/2018)

Justice (Friday 7 December)

Today we have reached agreements on a number of files which share the same objective of ensuring the EU works for its citizens, be it in terms of their rights as consumers, their responsibilities as parents or their need to live in a safe environment. Josef Moser, Federal Minister of Constitutional Affairs, Reforms, Deregulation and Justice of Austria

Regulation on e-evidence

The Council agreed its position on the regulation on European production and preservation orders for e-evidence in criminal matters. With these new rules the EU is taking steps to improve cross-border access to e-evidence by creating a legal framework for judicial orders to be addressed directly to service providers based in another member state.

• Regulation on cross border access to e-evidence : Council agrees its position (press release, 07/12/2018)

Directive on contracts for the sales of goods

The Council adopted its position on the sales of goods directive. This introduces better and clearer rules for both companies and consumers when it comes to sales of goods - in distance (including online) transactions, as well as face-to-face sales. The objective is to provide a coherent legal framework across the EU, whilst also providing for a high level of consumer protection.

• More unified rules on contracts for the sales of goods: Council agrees its position (press release, 07/12/2018)

Regulation on parental responsibility issues and international child abduction

The Council adopted its position on the revision of so called Brussels IIa regulation which sets out rules on jurisdiction, recognition and enforcement of decisions in matrimonial matters and the matters of parental responsibility, as well as on intra-EU child abduction. The objective is to make it easier and faster for decisions on parental responsibility issues and intra-EU child abduction to be applied across borders.

• Council agrees on more effective rules to solve cross border parental responsibility issues, (press release, 07/12/2018)

Council conclusions on mutual recognition in criminal matters

These conclusions aim at improving trust and cooperation between judicial authorities across the EU, a key aspect for the effective mutual recognition of judgment and judicial decisions. The conclusions foresee a number of practical actions to be taken, including: promoting training of practitioners; encouraging exchange of best practices; encouraging the full use of the possibilities offered by Eurojust and the European Judicial Network (EJN).

• Council conclusions on mutual recognition in criminal matters