A report published by the European Court of Auditors on Thursday said that more data exchange between EU nations as well as full interoperability between databanks would help to counter migrant trafficking more effectively. The report said that Europol, the European police agency, faces problems in getting access to databanks and making full use of external information sources.

Bettina Jakobsen, the Member of the European Court of Auditors responsible for the report noted that: "Europol is a valued partner to Member States in their fight against migrant smuggling. As an information exchange hub, Europol needs to have access to and systematically use all relevant data sources, but this is not currently the case. We hope that our audit will influence the ongoing review of the Europol Regulation."

90% of irregular migrants helped by traffickers

Europol estimates that about 90% of migrants crossing borders in an irregular manner are helped by traffickers, for the most part criminal groups that are involved in other illicit activities as well, such as counterfeiting documents and human trafficking. However, Member States are responsible for most actions to counter migrant trafficking.

The value of the service provided by Europol mostly depends on to what degree partners actively exchange data with the agency. The court noted that the 27 Member States have varying degrees of participation and that they at times give incomplete data.

The report states that the EU agency has issues negotiating international agreements with priority non-EU countries for access to operative data of criminal investigations in countries of origin and transit. Europol also has problems exchanging information with other EU bodies and recommends bolstering cooperation with Frontex and Eurojust, the agency for judicial authority cooperation, ensuring indirect access to databanks.