A video conference meeting of the Management Board of Europol was held on 14 and 15 December 2021 as part of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU. Slovenia is part of the Management Board under the trio Presidency (Germany, Portugal and Slovenia) and plays an active role in the preparation and chairing of the Board’s meetings.
In his opening address, Minister of the Interior Aleš Hojs said, "Europol plays an important role in investigating the most serious forms of crime, as international organised crime poses a major threat to security in Europe. This is the reason why we are actively advocating a revision of Europol's mandate to make it even more effective, with the most up-to-date tools and techniques to combat this threat. Slovenia is an active partner and cooperates with member states starting at the early stages of investigations, especially those involving the Western Balkan countries."
The Slovenian representative on the Management Board, Slavko Koroš from the Criminal Police Directorate of the General Police Directorate, who was unanimously elected as the Deputy Chairperson of the Management Board for the period from 1 July 2020 to the end of 2021 by all member states, said, "In terms of population, Slovenia ranks among the countries with the highest number of exchanges of information in specific operational investigations. Europol provides important support in investigations into the most serious forms of crime, acting as an information, analytical and technical hub of member states."
With the new Programming Document 2022–2024, Europol is taking on a number of new tasks, in relation to which some internal reorganisations will take place. The Programming Document sets out strategic priorities, mainly related to Europol's work and partly related to member states' activities. Over the next year, Europol will thus develop a unified and digitised way of collecting data as part of the new EMPACT (European Multidisciplinary Platform against Criminal Threats) cycle. The European Commission has developed new guidelines for the fight against cybercrime, to which Europol will adapt as well.
The Management Board also discussed the allocation of the 2022 budget of €192.4 million, representing an increase of €23.4 million compared to Europol's final budget in 2021. The Management Board supported Europol's proposal to recruit 71 new staff in 2022 as a result of a number of new tasks assigned to Europol.
Europol is an EU agency whose main goal is to achieve a safer Europe for the benefit of all EU citizens. Headquartered in The Hague, the Netherlands, Europol supports the 27 EU member states in their fight against terrorism, cybercrime and other serious and organised forms of crime. It also works with many non-EU partner states and international organisations.
Large-scale criminal and terrorist networks pose a significant threat to the internal security of the EU and to the safety and livelihood of its people. The biggest security threats come from terrorism, international drug trafficking and money laundering, organised fraud, counterfeiting of euros and trafficking in human beings. The networks behind the crimes in each of these areas are quick to seize new opportunities, and they are resilient in the face of traditional law enforcement measures.
The Europol Management Board provides a unique forum to ensure Europol's continued development as a trusted partner that successfully meets the needs and expectations of the European Union law enforcement community and, in doing so, contributes to a safer Europe. Its main responsibilities are to provide strategic guidance to the Agency and oversee the implementation of its tasks, to adopt its annual and multi-annual work programmes and annual budget, and to exercise governance responsibilities foreseen in the Europol Regulation. It is composed of two representatives from each EU member state (a member and an alternate member), a representative from the European Commission and Europol's Executive Director.
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