MEPs reject bank data deal with US

THE European Parliament has rejected a deal that gives the US access to all bank transfer data between banks in EU member states.

The US had claimed they wanted the legislation to help track financial transactions linked to terrorism.

US officials have now warned that terrorists will be able to use banking loopholes to transfer money illegally and has said it will now revert to bilateral deals with individual countries.

MEPs reacted with fury when member states’ ministers rushed through an interim agreement on the day before the Lisbon Treaty came into force, preventing the parliament from making changes to it.

MEPs’ fears included:

* The fact that too many bodies in the US and many governments in other countries were being given access to the data.

* That it could be used for purposes other than fighting terrorism.

* That it could be sold.

Parliament president, Jerzy Buzak, told EU leaders meeting in Brussels yesterday that the last-minute attempts on Wednesday to address the concerns of the MEPs were not sufficient.

The defeated interim agreement was to replace a previous deal which ran out last week and was intended to bridge the gap for this year until a new permanent arrangement was agreed.

The parliament’s decision has been welcomed by many civil liberties groups.

Dublin MEP Proinsias De Rossa said the proposed deal did not protect the rights of EU citizens and enterprises.

“It effectively provides for the transfer en masse of all personal and commercial information held on the SWIFT system to the US, contrary to EU law.”

Fellow MEP, Joe Higgins, suggested the agreement was an attack on civil liberties under the guise of “anti-terrorism” legislation, adding that the proposal “represents an attack on civil liberties, giving US agencies access to billions of financial transactions and personal information”.