Brexit: European Union Police Databases and Extradition Arrangements

Lord Anderson of Swansea Excerpts

Wednesday 20th June 2018 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

My noble friend makes that point very articulately, and he is absolutely right on extradition—I am sure that he is. It is in everybody’s interest that we preserve that national security relationship. The UK has played its part in the huge move, in the past 12 months to two years, to help European countries when they have faced difficulties through terrorist attacks. Our police have been at the forefront of some of the aid that we have given to our European partners. It would be a detrimental move for there not to be co-operation between the UK and our European partners once we leave the European Union. Life, as my noble friend says, is the most important thing here.

[Lord Anderson of Swansea (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Lord Davies of Stamford (Lab)]

My Lords—

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Anderson of Swansea]

My Lords, is not the key consideration in these negotiations that there is a mutuality of interest between ourselves and our EU partners in the field of security? Monsieur Barnier must surely recognise that we have very much to offer, as was shown recently by the remarks of the director of GCHQ.

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

The noble Lord is absolutely right. We have a mutuality of interest, as my noble friend has just pointed out—and, as I have said, it would be inconceivable that some of the work that we have done in co-operation with our European partners, which has been of mutual multilateral interest throughout the EU 27, would be lost in our exit from the EU.