Bucharest - Deputy chairman of the Committee on Domestic Policy and National Security Mr Petar Škorić and member of the Committee Ms Ines Strenja participated in the 4th meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group on the Europol (JPSG) held on 24 and 25 February 2019 in Bucharest.
Among the main issues discussed during the JPSG meeting on 25 February 2019 were Europol activities and the decisions of the Europol Management Board in the period September 2018 -February 2019. Catherine De Bolle, Executive Director of Europol, and Victor Wili Apreutesei, Chairperson of the Europol Management Board, answered the questions posed by JPSG members.
Giovanni Buttarelli, the European Data Protection Supervisor, and Francois Pellegrino, Chair of the Europol Cooperation Board, reported back on the state of data protection at the Europol. State of play and activity report including support against counterfeiting of the European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) of non-cash means of payment and countering dark web crimes was also presented, as well as the activities of the European Travel Intelligence Centre (ETIC).
The closing speech was delivered by Julian King, European Commissioner for the Security Union, who emphasized the crucial role Europol has in combating serious and organized crime, terrorism and cybercrime and the growing significance of the scrutiny work carried out by JPSG. At the invitation of the JPSG Co-Chairs, the Romanian and European Parliament, the Head of the Croatian Parliament Delegation Petar Škorić attended on 24 February 2019 the preparatory meeting of the Presidential Troika (parliaments of Romania, Austria and Finland), during which the procedure for appointing the JPSG representative for the Europol Management Board meetings was discussed. Škorić also participated as an observer in the 2nd meeting of the Working Group on the participation of Denmark in JPSG meetings.
The next meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group on Europol will be held in Brussels on 24 and 25 September 2019, when the Croatian Parliament will be one of the parliaments in the Presidential Troika.