German MEP slams EU's 'unnecessary' new entry-exit system
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The EU is demanding increased quantities of biometric data from people travelling across its borders, which an expert has claimed will “undermine liberty”. Silkie Carlo, who is a specialist in human rights and state surveillance, argued that the new policies risk “edging us towards a bleak future mirroring the kind of techno-totalitarianism modelled by China.” The EU is introducing a new biometric border control system, known as the Entry-Exit System (EES) which will take photos and fingerprints of people from third countries crossing the border.
She described it as a “biometric power-grab”, claiming it is “sinister and grotesque”.
Ms Carlo added: “Distinctly European values are falling between the cracks in the technological revolution – our cherished liberty, the presumption of innocence and the right to privacy.”
The EU said the EES will help to prevent “cross-border crime and terrorism.”
A statement from the European Commission said the new system “will contribute to prevent irregular migration and help protect the security of European citizens.”
But Ms Carlo said the system will have an “eye-watering cost to liberty and logistics”.
Writing in the Telegraph, she also warned that it will have a “disastrous impact on tourism and transport”.
She claimed that the checks will take “seven times longer than checks today and the tailback at Dover could grow by 19 miles – roughly the distance of the Channel crossing itself.”
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