The work of Europol and the fight against organised crime the focus of discussions at the JPSG meeting

Published 3 April | When the Riksdag hosted the JSPG meeting, discussions included the work of Europol, European police cooperation and the fight against organised crime, for example trafficking in human beings. Members from the national parliaments of the EU member states and the European Parliament participated in the meeting, as well as invited keynote speakers from inter alia Europol.

Group photo on the Grand Stairway with approximately 80 people. — Photo: Melker Dahlstrand/ The Swedish Parliament
Group photo JPSG Europol Conference on 27 March 2023.

On 26–27 March, the Riksdag arranged the twelfth meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group on Europol (JPSG on Europol). This was one of the conferences held within the framework of the Riksdag’s part of the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the European Union – the parliamentary dimension. The JPSG meeting was co-chaired by the Head of the Riksdag JSPG delegation, Adam Marttinen (Sweden Democrats), and the Chair of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs of the European Parliament (LIBE), Juan Fernando López Aguilar.

Members discussed the fight against organised crime and the work of Europol

The meeting on Monday started with a discussion with the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, on the fight against organised crime and in particular, sexual abuse of children. The Minister for Justice Gunnar Strömmer also gave an address at the meeting on the priorities of the Swedish Presidency in the area of internal security. The agenda of the meeting also included two thematic debates, on Europol’s operational support to EU member states and on the fight against trafficking in human beings. These debates began with presentations from Europol, the Swedish police authority, the EU Anti-Trafficking Coordinator and the Netherlands police authority.

Scrutiny of Europol one of the main objectives of the meeting

The task of the JPSG is to scrutinise how Europol – the EU Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation – performs its duties, and a standing point at JPSG meetings is to discuss Europol’s activities. One of the sessions at the meeting at the Riksdag was therefore devoted to this, at which the Europol Executive Director and the Chairperson of the Europol Management Board reported on its activities and then answered the members’ questions. The JSPG’s scrutiny also includes the impact of the Agency's activities on the protection of personal data and the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) therefore also reported on his supervision of Europol’s processing of personal data and answered questions from members.

“The basic task of the JPSG is to politically monitor Europol’s activities in fulfilling its mission, and I think that at the meeting we succeeded in having a fruitful and dynamic discussion between the members and the management of Europol,” says Adam Marttinen (Sweden Democrats), Head of the Riksdag JSPG delegation.

The Riksdag to arrange eight conferences during the EU Presidency

Sweden is holding the Presidency of the Council of the European Union in January–June 2023. Within the framework of the parliamentary dimension of the Presidency, the Riksdag is arranging eight conferences and meetings during this period, in which primarily members of the national parliaments of the EU member states and of the European Parliament participate and discuss various matters. The conferences are part of continuing cooperation between the parliaments, also known as interparliamentary cooperation in the EU.

Webcasts

The JSPG meeting was broadcast via the Riksdag webcast service, and is also available on demand.

Webcasts: The meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group on Europol – JPSG-Europol

More information

Contact person for the media

Livia Spada, Secretary to the Riksdag JPSG Delegation, tel: +46 8 786 54 58, email: livia.spada@riksdagen.se
The Riksdag Administration Press Service: +46 8 786 62 00