EU agrees on collecting air passenger data after Paris attacks

The European Parliament is expected to adopt the proposal on the use of passenger name records, widely known as PNR, such as names and flight details, in a meeting early next year. After the European Commission presented the current proposal in 2011, deliberations dragged on at the parliament as members expressed concerns over privacy. The issue drew renewed interest following the terror attacks in Paris last month, resulting in an agreement on its implementation. Under the proposal, airlines will be required to transfer to EU state authorities the PNR data of passengers on flights to and from the EU. PNR is produced when a reservation for a flight is made. Data provision is not mandatory for intra-EU flights but state authorities may request data transfer. Data will be stored for six months. The full data will then be masked and stored for four and a half years with a strict procedure to be followed before access is possible, according to the EU Council. The Japanese government is also studying collecting PNR data as a measure to counter terrorism ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and discussing cooperation in this area with the EU. "This is a good agreement that will deliver an effective tool for fighting terrorism and serious crime," said Timothy Kirkhope, a European Parliament member who pushed for the legislation, in a statement.