19th May 2025 13:59
(Alliance News) - The UK will enter talks to access facial image data sharing with the EU for the first time, the government said, in a bid to ramp up criminal investigations across borders.
Under an agreement struck with Brussels, the move towards more data sharing seeks to help investigators speed up catching criminals and people smugglers.
The deal's measures to boost law enforcement and judicial cooperation will also look at further ways to exchange current information sharing on fingerprints, DNA and criminal records.
It comes as joint efforts to tackle Channel crossings and to deepen information sharing "to control and manage migration" at UK and EU borders were also agreed.
A joint statement said: "We recognised the shared challenge of irregular migration and the need to address it with a whole of route approach, including by working with countries of origin and transit, and to prevent irregular Channel crossings.
"We agreed to work together to fight human trafficking and people smuggling, drugs trafficking, serious and transnational organised crime as well as terrorism and violent extremism, including in its online dimension."
It added: "The UK and the European Commission should bolster their operational and strategic cooperation to tackle the challenges posed by irregular migration along key routes and at external borders, including through their agencies, law enforcement and judicial cooperation, and information sharing capabilities."
While it was agreed to do more to secure the borders, they also vowed to give international protection to those who need it.
It comes as more than 12,500 people have arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel so far this year, a record number at this point in the calendar year since data was first collected in 2018.
Elsewhere the UK-EU deal pledged to work together on sharing operational information on returns to third countries, and explore possible deterrents and "innovative solutions" to curb illegal migration.
On a trip to Albania last week, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he has talked to countries about "return hubs" for failed asylum seekers as the government is looking at the possibility of processing them in third countries before they are deported.
The parties also vowed to crack down on visa abuse of legal migration routes.
By Anahita Hossein-Pour
Press Association: News
source: PA
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