Commissioners Reynders and Johansson participate in the Justice and Home Affairs Council, 13-14 October

The Commissioner for Justice, Didier Reynders, will take part in the Justice Council on 13 October taking place in Luxembourg. The ministers will address current legislative files including the Commission’s proposal for a Directive on Environmental Crime. Commissioner Reynders will also present the Commission’s recent proposals for new liability rules on products and on AI. The ministers will be joined by the European Public Prosecutor, Laura Kövesi, who will present the EPPO’s latest work. On Ukraine, Commissioner Reynders will debrief the ministers on his recent visit during which he met with the Ukrainian Prosecutor General, Andriy Kostin; and will underline the work the Commission is doing to enforce the sanctions, including via the ‘Freeze and Seize’ Task Force, as well as helping Ukraine ensure accountability for war crimes. Commissioner Reynders will also participate in an exchange views on judicial training and its impact on access to justice in the context of rule of law. The ministerial meeting will be the opportunity for Commissioner Reynders to inform Ministers on the next steps of the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, following the US signature of their Executive Order. During a working lunch with Michael O’Flaherty, Director of the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, there will be an exchange of views on fundamental rights in times of crises. Commissioner Reynders will participate in the press conference following the meeting, which will take place at 15:30 CEST. You can follow it live on EbS. Tomorrow, the Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, will meet with the Home Affairs ministers in the framework of the Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial meeting, taking place also in Luxembourg. The ministers will address Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the support to those fleeing Russia’s invasion to Ukraine – on migration, as well as an internal security issue. The Council (including ministers of Schengen Associated countries) will discuss the overall state of the Schengen area, with a particular focus on the management of external borders.  The ministers will discuss the ongoing implementation of interoperable information systems, as well as potential enlargement of the Schengen area. They will also discuss wider asylum and migration challenges in Europe in view of the Commission’s recently published 2022 Report on migration and asylum. Over lunch, ministers will discuss the increasing migratory pressure on the Western Balkans route, with the participation of Vice-President Schinas and Commissioner Johansson. Vice-President Schinas will debrief the ministers on his recent Western Balkans tour. A press conference with Commissioner Johansson and the Czech Minister of the Interior, Vít Rakušan, will follow the meeting tomorrow at +/- 17:00 CEST. You can follow it live on EbS.