Statement on Brexit Agreement

Following the agreement reached between the UK Government and the European Union, which ensures that most existing law enforcement tools and mechanisms will be retained after the transition period ends on 31 December 2020, Lord Willy Bach, Police and Crime Commissioner for Leicestershire said:

“Policing has known all along that whatever emerged in the final deal, it was always going to be inferior to the pre-Brexit arrangements. Fighting crime in Britain will be made more difficult by losing the European Arrest Warrant and live access to information held on the SIS II database. The alternatives are slower, more complicated, and less reliable. But there have been some successes. For example, forces will not be losing access to the criminal records information included within airports’ Passenger Name Records. I am most relieved that this capability is covered in the deal.”

Ends