EuGH: Arrest warrant from Britain must be scrutinized independently after Brexit
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) in Luxembourg has clarified how to handle the enforcement of arrest warrants from the United Kingdom in the European Union after Brexit. According to the ECJ's explanations regarding a case brought by an Irish man charged with terrorism, each arrest warrant from the United Kingdom in the affected EU member state must undergo an independent review.
The ECJ ruled that British arrest warrants must be assessed for the risk of a violation of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights for the person concerned. The enforcement of the arrest warrant may only be refused if there are objective, reliable, precise, and up-to-date reasons indicating that there is a real risk that a heavier sentence than the originally threatened sentence at the time of the commission of the offence will be imposed.
The enforcement of arrest warrants is regulated in a separate agreement. The ECJ referred to the principle of mutual judicial cooperation within the EU, which is based on a high degree of trust, and therefore a simplified system for the transfer of convicts or suspects between EU members applies. With the United Kingdom, this principle of trust no longer applies after Brexit. However, such a level of trust can be established through agreements with third countries. The existing agreement, however, does not establish such privileged relationships.
In the present case, a judge in one of the constituent parts of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland, had issued four arrest warrants against a terror suspect. This terror suspect argued before the Irish Supreme Court that his transfer was incompatible with the principle of legality in relation to offences and penalties. He complained that the United Kingdom had changed the provisions on conditional release for the offences he was accused of.**
- The new procedures for enforcing British arrest warrants in the EU after Brexit might displease orannoy certain authorities due to the stringent review process required, as stated by the European Court of Justice.
- The Danger of a potential heavier sentence for the person concerned upon transfer from the UK to an EU member state could lead to the denial of enforcing an arrest warrant, as highlighted by the ECJ's guidelines.
- The Great Britain's departure from the EU has resulted in an EUGH for the existing agreement on mutual judicial cooperation, necessitating a more complex process to establish a level of trust required for efficient enforcement of arrest warrants.
