Donal Carey
Question:23 Mr. D. Carey asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if Ireland will opt into the EU Schengen travel arrangements. [4292/00]
Written Answers. - Schengen Agreements.
As the Deputy is no doubt aware "Schengen" means much more than passport-free travel. The Schengen Agreements provide for a comprehen sive series of measures with a view to achieving the removal of all police and customs formalities for persons crossing internal borders between participating states and to ensuring that this freedom is not exploited by criminals. Schengen is a separate intergovernmental framework of co-operation which has developed outside the EC-EU Treaty framework and began in 1985 when a group of European countries decided to shift the emphasis from internal border controls to external border controls, so as to create an area of free movement within a single secure external border.
Agreement to incorporate Schengen into the European Union framework was reached at the intergovernmental conference which culminated in the signing of the Amsterdam Treaty on 2 October 1997. Incorporation of the Schengen Agreements into the EU framework took place on entry into force of the Amsterdam Treaty on 1 May 1999.
By virtue of the Treaty of Amsterdam and the Schengen Protocol, Ireland is not subject to the automatic application of the Schengen acquis post its incorporation into the EU framework. However, the Treaty of Amsterdam provides that Ireland and the UK will be able to take part in Schengen co-operation if they wish. Ireland submitted a declaration at the time of signature of the Treaty that it intended to participate to the maximum possible extent in these provisions, subject to the requirements of the common travel area with the UK.
A formal written application from the United Kingdom to opt into certain sections of Schengen was submitted on 20 May 1999 and it is now under consideration within the JHA Council framework. Ireland has indicated that it proposed to opt in to similar provisions to the UK, although not necessarily the same ones. Our application to participate in Schengen has not yet been tabled; it is currently under consideration in the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.