Division 7.3 Consulting the Member States prior to alerts on grounds of State security

A Member State planning to issue an alert for the purposes of discreet surveillance or of a specific check on the grounds of State security shall consult the other Member States before doing so.

A specific procedure is required to safeguard the confidentiality of certain information, and any contact between the services responsible for State security should therefore be kept quite separate from the contact between the Sirene bureaux.

In each case, the Sirene bureau shall ensure that the consultation procedure functions smoothly and shall record the results. The information itself shall be exchanged directly between the specialised services concerned.

The following procedure has been adopted:

1. (a)

   Before entering an alert, the security department concerned contacts its Schengen counterparts directly. The purpose of this is mainly to establish whether there are any objections to the planned alert.

2. (b)

   Following the exchange of information, the security department wishing to enter the alert forwards the results of the information exchange to its national Sirene bureau.

3. (c)

   The Sirene bureau shall inform the other Sirene bureau, so allowing the other Sirene bureaux to consult their respective security departments (M form).

4. (d)

   Once the Sirene bureau of the issuing Member State has established that the consultation process has been properly completed, it shall approve the entry of the alert.

5. (e)

   Should a Member State perceive a difficulty with the establishment of the alert, its Sirene bureau shall inform the issuing Member State.

6. (f)

   If the issuing Member State wishes to maintain the alert, the requested Member State may ask that a flag be entered. This shall be withdrawn if, after full consideration, it is found to be unnecessary. Otherwise it shall be retained, thereby suspending the course of action that should normally be followed for the alert.