28 May 2001
Britain on the spot in EU report on spy net
Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, Daily Telegraph

The document puts Britain on notice that it cannot continue to operate a joint intelligence system with America now that the EU is acquiring military ambitions. It predicts that "intelligence gathering may be precisely the issue that forces the United Kingdom to decide whether its destiny is European or transatlantic".

The report concludes a year-long investigation by a committee of the European Parliament into "Echelon", the American eavesdropping network which intercepts fax, email, telephone and satellite transmissions across Europe from listening posts in England.

Contradicting repeated assurances by Downing Street that Nato will not be harmed, the report made clear that the creation of a 60,000-man force would fundamentally change the nature of relations between the EU and the alliance.

The report said: "The existence of such a multinational force will make the development of an autonomous intelligence capacity inevitable." The draft text also said EU economic integration would "necessitate" an intelligence capability. In a sign that the EU is developing a fortress mentality, it argued that "a united European economic policy implies a united perception of economic reality in the world outside the European Union".

The investigation, carried out at the insistence of the French, said there was no longer any doubt about the existence of the "Echelon" network, which is run by the US National Security Agency in collaboration with Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. (..)

Even so, the study suggested that Britain is in breach of Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which guarantees the privacy of family life and private correspondence of every citizen in signatory states. Britain falls foul of the convention for allowing Washington to arry out surveillance of citizens from listening posts such as Menwith Hill in Yorkshire. (..)

Should clear evidence of commercial espionage come to light, Britain would find itself in violation of several European Union laws involving data protection and distortions of the single market. Above all, "perfidious Albion" would be in breach of Article 10 of the Amsterdam Treaty, which commits every member state to uphold the common interest of the EU.