EU-wide job bans for sex offenders essential

2.00.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Wed 18th Jun 2008

MEPs have voted to approve an EU law which would improve the current highly inadequate exchange of information on criminal convictions between EU Member States, though progress towards a truly efficient computerised system is yet to come and there is still a loophole on sex offenders.

The present proposed law will for the first time positively require each EU Member State to promptly inform their counterparts of convictions imposed on their own nationals. Thus each European country will hold a full criminal record for its citizens including convictions imposed by the courts of other EU states, and all criminal convictions imposed anywhere in the EU ought to be taken into account during new criminal proceedings and employment screening in the citizen's home state.

London Liberal Democrat MEP and LibDem European justice spokeswoman Baroness Sarah Ludford said:

"While this is at least a step forward, it is frustrating that the 27 governments have still left a big loophole. They have refused to agree that job bans on sex offenders, such as working with children, should be automatically recorded, exchanged and recognised EU-wide. It makes no sense that a sex offender banned from certain jobs in one EU country could potentially take up the same work in another."

"While data exchange is vital, it is also essential that strong data protection safeguards are observed so that there is no inaccurate information and inclusion of sensitive data like ethnic origin or sexual orientation only when a court orders it is relevant."