Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she plans to take to expand the application of the Extradition (Provisional Arrest) Act 2020 to EU member states after 21 December 2020; what the timescale is for expanding the application of that legislation; what step she is taking to ensure that UK authorities have the power to arrest based on Interpol Red Notices issued by EU member states after 31 December 2020.

The Extradition (Provisional Arrest) Act 2020 (‘The Act’) provides UK law enforcement agencies with the power of arrest on an international arrest alert (typically in the form of an Interpol Notice) which has been certified by the National Crime Agency. The Act was amended at Third Reading in the House of Commons on 8 September to add EU Member States to the Schedule of countries within scope of this power.

The Act will be commenced at the end of the Transition Period and its provisions were drafted to allow commencement for the EU Member States only should it prove to be necessary and not if there is an agreement which provides for the continuation of a warrant-based system after 31 December.