European Union

The public debate on genetic engineering in agriculture is largely characterised by misinformation, myths and a confused understanding of nature, writes plant breeding and gene editing expert, Professor Hans-Jörg Jacobsen (PhD).

There are only a few months left until Germany will take over the EU Presidency. But the ongoing corona crisis could really upset the plans, says the president of the European Movement Germany. What can the EU actually do in these turbulent times?

The European Court of Auditors (ECA) has launched a probe into the resilience of the bloc's attempts to stifle fake news that can 'cause public harm,' the institution announced on Tuesday (17 March).

Iran has temporarily freed a total of 85,000 prisoners, including political prisoners, a spokesman for its judiciary said on Tuesday, adding that the prisons were responding to the threat of a coronavirus epidemic in jails, the Guardian writes. "Some 50 percent of those released are security-related prisoners [political prisoners]. Also in the jails we have taken precautionary measures to confront the outbreak," the spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili said.

**This article is continuously updated with the latest developments. With the new Belgian emergency government taking the last hurdles in the confirmation process, Prime Minister Sophie Wilmes’ team is mulling further measures in the fight against the cornavirus outbreak. As of...

France's finance minister said Tuesday (17 March) that he was willing to nationalise large companies to protect them from bankruptcy, while warning that the country faces recession this year as the coronavirus epidemic sinks the economy.

Welcome to EURACTIV’s weekly Transport Brief – your one port of call for all the news moving the world and much more! This week: coronavirus updates, big changes in the auto world and space race problems.

Governments around the world are demonstrating – all too evidently – that they are unable to tackle two major crises at once, writes Jonathan Gornall.

Energy major Total has lifted the lid on a project that aims to construct the largest battery storage facility in France. It could help boost the growth of intermittent renewable power in the French energy mix.

In today's edition of the Capitals, find out more about French President Emmanuel Macron saying we are currently "at war" with COVID-19, the Romanian government being formed amidst a health crisis, and so much more.

Employers organisations insisted during a meeting with Bulgarian President Rumen Radev that the state should pay immediately all its pending debts to companies so that they could have fresh money during the COVID-19 crisis. “We need complex measures to keep...

The new Slovak government will be installed on Saturday (March 21). Outgoing Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini (Smer-SD) promised the transfer of power will be courteous and dignified. New Prime Minister Igor Matovič (OĽaNO)  has said his government will not have...

Poland now has 177 confirmed cases of coronavirus as of Monday with four deaths so far. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced the suspension of domestic air travel, as well as the closing of borders, which was part of a government...

Yesterday, Italy’s government issued a €25 billion stimulus package with measures ranging from financial aid for troubling businesses to suspending tax payments for families. In presenting the plan, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte suggested other EU countries follow Italy’s model...

While the number of reported cases had risen to 1,016 by Monday evening, the anti-coronavirus law passed by parliament the day before came into effect. The law closes down most public spaces such as museums, parks, restaurants and shops with...

Prime Minister Sophie Wilmès (MR) will address the Belgian parliament to ask for support for a fully-fledged minority government on Tuesday (17 March) with a vote to follow on Thursday (19 March), after the coronavirus led to a small political...

The government reached an agreement on Monday with all 16 regions on measures to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus, which Chancellor Angela Merkel announced that evening. Also, keep up-to-date with EURACTIV Germany’s coronavirus coverage here. In a bid to...

The most devastating medical crisis in Italy since World War Two is forcing doctors, patients and their families to make decisions that Marco Resta, a former military doctor, said he has not experienced even in the Kosovo war.

Ireland’s Health Service Executive has released guidance on taking care of your mental health, as workers across the continent adopt measures to self-isolate amid the coronavirus outbreak. In order to mitigate some of the potentially negative ramifications of the Coronavirus...

Written by Costica Dumbrava,

© M-SUR/shutterstock

Free movement across internal borders is one of the EU’s most important achievements, with important benefits for EU citizens. The Schengen Borders Code (or Schengen Code) specifies the conditions under which Member States can introduce temporary checks at their internal borders in cases of serious threats to public policy or internal security. The Code was revised in 2017 in order to strengthen the EU’s external borders and to help cope with unprecedented migratory pressure and cross-border security threats. A Commission legislative proposal to further update the Schengen Code in order to tighten up the rules on temporary border controls is currently with the co-legislators. The recent coronavirus outbreak has pushed several Member States to reintroduce border controls at some of the EU’s internal borders in an attempt to contain the spread of the virus.

The Schengen Code

The Schengen Code lays down the common rules governing the management of internal and external EU borders, including rules and procedures concerning the exceptional introduction of border checks at internal borders. There are currently three cases in which Member States can introduce temporary border checks at their internal borders on grounds of a serious threat to public policy or internal security: (1) in the case of a foreseeable threat (e.g. a special event such as a sporting competition); (2) in the case of an immediate threat; and (3) in the situation of persistent serious deficiencies relating to external borders.

Foreseeable threat to public policy or internal security

According to Article 25 of the Schengen Code, a Member State can reintroduce exceptional border controls at all or specific parts of its internal borders if there is a serious threat to public policy or internal security. Any such measures should be exceptional, temporary and proportionate. If the serious threat to public policy or internal security in the Member State concerned persists, the period can be prolonged by renewable periods of 30 days, up to a maximum six months. The Member State concerned must notify the Commission and the other Member States at least four weeks before taking action, unless the circumstances giving rise to the measures arise within a shorter timeframe. The notification must specify the reasons, scope and duration of the measures. The information must also be submitted to the European Parliament and the Council. The Commission is supposed to issue an opinion after consulting the other Member States.

Immediate threat to public policy or internal security

Under Article 28 of the Code, a Member State can introduce immediate border controls at internal borders if there is a serious threat to public policy or internal security. This measure must be exceptional and is to be limited to up to ten days. If the serious threat to public policy or internal security persists, the period may be prolonged by renewable periods of 20 days, up to maximum of two months. The Member State concerned must notify the Commission and the other Member States immediately, providing information about the reasons, scope and duration of the measures. The Commission must inform the European Parliament immediately and, after consulting the other Member States, should issue an opinion.

Persistent serious deficiencies relating to external border control

Under Article 29 of the Code, a Member State may introduce temporary border checks at internal borders when there are persistent serious deficiencies in the external border management of a Member State, as demonstrated during a Schengen evaluation. This period could be prolonged up to three times if the exceptional circumstances persist, up to a limit of maximum two years. Acting on a proposal from the Commission, the Council can issue a recommendation for one or more Member States to reintroduce border controls at all or specific parts of their borders. The Member State(s) concerned must then notify the other Member States, the European Parliament and the Commission before reintroducing border controls, or inform the Commission in writing of their reasons for not implementing the Council’s recommendation. The Commission must present the European Parliament and the Council with a report on the functioning of the area without internal border controls at least once a year. This report must include a list of all decisions taken to reintroduce border controls at internal borders during the relevant year.

Cases of border checks reinstated at internal borders

The unprecedented inflow of migrants and asylum-seekers that peaked in 2015 put great strain on the EU’s external borders, leading a number of Members States to reintroduce controls along some of their borders with other Member States. While justified by the need to cope with an exceptional situation, these measures have disrupted the functioning of the Schengen area, generating significant economic, social and political costs. According to an EPRS study from 2016, the economic cost for a two-year suspension of Schengen by all participating states would range from €25 billion to €50 billion, while indefinite suspension of Schengen would cost between €100 billion and €230 billion over 10 years.  Currently there are six Schengen Member States that have temporarily reintroduced border controls along parts of their borders with other Member States in connection with foreseeable threats to public policy or internal security (mainly terrorism threats, secondary movements by irregular migrants and special events).

Following the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19), a number of Member States have adopted exceptional measures aimed at containing the spreadof the virus, including measures to reintroduce border checks or close their borders with other Member States. To prevent disruption of the supply of essential goods and medical staff in the EU, the European Commission has adopted an export authorisation scheme for protective equipment and has presented Member States with guidelines on border measures.

Current cases of internal border controls (for foreseeable events)
Norway (12 November 2019 – 12 May 2020)
Sweden (12 November 2019 – 12 May 2020)
Denmark (12 November 2019 – 12 May 2020)
Germany (12 November 2019 – 12 May 2020)
Austria (12 November 2019 – 12 May 2020)
France (31 October 2019 – 30 April 2020) Revision of the Schengen Code

The Schengen Code was revised in 2017 in the context of measures to strengthen external borders to allow for mandatory systematic checks on all people crossing the EU’s external borders, including the verification of biometric information in the relevant databases.

In September 2017, the Commission presented a proposal for a regulation to amend the rules applicable to the temporary reintroduction of checks at internal borders, aiming to adapt the maximum periods for these measures in order to enable Member States to respond adequately to serious threats to public policy or internal security. The proposal also introduces further procedural safeguards (e.g. an obligation to conduct ‘assessments’) to ensure that the use of internal border checks remains exceptional and proportionate, thus encouraging Member States to use police checks and cooperation instead of internal border controls.

European Parliament position

The European Parliament has constantly reiterated its commitment to safeguarding the Schengen area. In its resolution of 30 May 2018 on the annual report on the functioning of the Schengen area, it condemned ‘the continued reintroduction of internal border checks as this undermines the basic principles of the Schengen area’, and called for the establishment of substantial procedural safeguards, in particular to maintain a strict time limit on the reintroduction of checks at internal borders.

In its legislative resolution on the proposal for a regulation amending the rules applicable to the temporary reintroduction of border control, adopted in April 2019, Parliament reiterated that the Schengen area is one of the Union’s main achievements and stressed the need for a common response to situations seriously affecting the public policy or internal security of the Schengen area. Parliament maintained that the temporary reintroduction of border controls at internal borders should occur only in exceptional circumstances and as a last resort. While it agreed with the Commission that in the event of a long-term threat there should be a possibility to prolong internal border controls beyond six months, on an exceptional basis, the European Parliament maintained that the prolongation must not lead to a further extension of temporary border controls beyond one year (the Commission proposed a two-year maximum). Having adopted its position at first reading, Parliament is now waiting for Council to set out its position.

Read this ‘At a glance’ on ‘Temporary border controls in the Schengen area‘ in the Think Tank pages of the European Parliament.