ROADMAP

Roadmaps aim to inform citizens and stakeholders about the Commission's work in order to allow them to provide feedback and to participate effectively in future consultation activities. Citizens and stakeholders are in particular invited to provide views on the Commission's understanding of the problem and possible solutions and to make available any relevant information that they may have.

Title of the initiatives

Communication on an EU Strategy to tackle organised crime (2021-2025) and related Communication on an EU Strategy on Combating Trafficking in Human Beings (2021-2025)

Lead DG – responsible unit

Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs (DG HOME), Unit on Organised Crime and Drugs Policy.

Likely Type of initiative

Communications

Indicative Planning

Q2 2021.

Additional Information

EU policy on fighting organised crime: https://ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/what-we-do/policies/organized-crime-and-human-trafficking_e  

EU policy against trafficking in human beings: https://ec.europa.eu/anti-trafficking/ 

This Roadmap is provided for information purposes only and its content might change. It does not prejudge the final decision of the Commission on whether this initiative will be pursued or on its final content. All elements of the initiative described by the Roadmap, including its timing, are subject to change.

A. Context, Problem definition and Subsidiarity Check

Context

The Treaties establish the objective for the Union to constitute an area of freedom, security and justice and to ensure a high level of security through measures to prevent and combat crime and to promote cooperation between police and judicial authorities as well as other competent authorities.

The Commission’s Political Guidelines highlighted the need to “improve cross-border cooperation to tackle gaps in the fight against serious crime” as a means for promoting Europe’s citizens and values.

The Security Union Strategy 1 further developed on this objective by calling for a reinforced EU action “against organised crime, including at international level, with more tools to dismantle organised crime’s business model” and with closer “cooperation with local and regional administrations as well as civil society, who are key partners in crime prevention as well as in providing assistance and support to victims”. Acknowledging the huge economic and social costs brought by organised crime, the increased cross-border nature of organised crime operations and the emergence of new challenges, including online crime, the Security Union Strategy announced the development of an EU Agenda on tackling organised crime, including trafficking in human beings. 

Trafficking in human beings is a particularly serious form of organised crime with transnational dimension, a grave violation of fundamental rights, a complex phenomenon with specific features as to the modus operandi of the criminals profiting from the vulnerable situation of people for exploitation purposes. The Security Union Strategy highlights trafficking as a highly profitable demand-driven crime, where prosecutions and convictions are low and that needs to be addressed comprehensively, also in relation to other crimes such as migrant smuggling. The new Pact on Migration and Asylum 2 highlights the high risks of trafficking along migration routes, including for vulnerable women and girls to become victims of trafficking for sexual exploitation or other forms of gender-based violence.

The Commission included the Communication on an EU Agenda on tackling organised crime in its Work Programme 2021, 3 and the strategy combating trafficking in human beings was also scheduled for 2021 in the Commission’s adjusted 2020 Work Programme 4 . 

Problem the initiatives aims to tackle

More than 5,000 organised crime groups were under investigation in Europe in 2017 – a 50% rise compared to 2013 5 . Organised crime is increasingly operating cross-border including from the immediate neighbourhood of the EU, calling for intensified operational cooperation and information exchange with partners in the neighbourhood and beyond.

The economic loss due to organised crime and corruption has been estimated to represent between €218 and €282 billion annually 6 . Moreover, organised crime creates incalculable human, economic and social costs, since it erodes the rule of law, undermining citizens’ right to safety and the trust in public authorities, undermines fundamental rights, distorts the internal market and negatively affects public finances (e.g. through VAT fraud, corruption, etc.). Profits of organised crime groups are estimated at €110 billion per year in the EU. There is a strong link between organised crime and corruption. It has been roughly estimated that corruption alone costs the EU economy €120 billion per year. Against this background, the European Union currently lacks a comprehensive approach to combatting organised crime structures. Moreover certain instruments of the relevant legal framework, such as the Framework Decision against organised crime, are more than ten years old and may not be up-to-date to address current challenges related to organised crime. 

Meanwhile, the estimated global annual profit from trafficking in human beings is €29.4 billion 7 . The economic, social and human costs of trafficking is estimated in one single year in the EU as € 2.7 billion. While progress has been made in relation to the implementation of the ten years old EU Anti-trafficking Directive, 8 including national legislation and action plans, transnational cooperation within the EU and with non-EU countries, national and transnational referral mechanisms and developing the knowledge base about the phenomenon 9 , the crime continues to evolve, criminals traffic individuals due to demand for exploited services of the victims (sexual, labour and other). In two years (2017-2018) 14,145 victims were registered in the EU and the actual number of victims is likely much higher.

Around half of these victims were EU nationals; most of the victims were women and girls (72%); almost every fourth victim was a child (22%); most victims were trafficked for sexual exploitation (60%); many for labor exploitation (15%). Criminal activities have become digital, organised crime groups adapt swiftly to the changing social and economic environment; traffickers prey in asylum and migration processes, the economic and social impact of Covid-19 further exacerbated the situation.

Basis for EU intervention (legal basis and subsidiarity check)

Under the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), the legal basis of the EU policy on organised crime is based on the area of freedom, security and justice (Title V of Part Three).

Organised crime is transnational: criminal networks operate within the EU and beyond, be it to commit their crimes, traffic with illegal substances or to launder the gains of their criminal activities. They also use new technologies, such as anonymous channels to communicate and plot in secret, to market illegal substances and products and to reach out to the victims of their crimes. Trafficking in human beings is a particularly serious crime with cross-border dimension. Given its cross-border and evolving nature, an effective response to organised crime requires an action at EU level.

B. What does the initiative aim to achieve and how

The European Commission will propose a Commission Communication presenting an EU Strategy to tackle organised crime that will cover the period 2021-2025 (‘Organised Crime Strategy’) and a Communication on a new Strategy to Combat Trafficking in human beings.

Organised Crime Strategy: it will be the strategic guiding document for the EU’s fight against organised crime for the next five years. The new EU Organised Crime Strategy will provide the overarching political framework and priorities for the EU policy and aim to support action by the Member States complementing national security and national/local action, as well as supporting effective collaboration and coordination cross-borders, cross-sectors and among relevant competent authorities, such as law enforcement, customs, etc. It will uphold EU’s values and standards and the Rule of Law. Given the human, environmental, economic and social costs of organised crime, the Strategy is expected to contribute to economic development, social cohesion and trust, and to the protection of human rights, the licit economy and the environment.

This Strategy will set out specific priority actions under each chapter. They will be either of legislative nature (such as amendments of legislation/substantive criminal law), or operational nature (Policy Cycle/EMPACT, supporting networks, etc.) or actions in the international arena. In light of recent developments, including the COVID-19 pandemic, it will address emerging and current challenges and will aim at boosting law enforcement cooperation.

This Strategy will incorporate work on the Digital capacity of Law enforcement and on the Commission contribution to the EU Policy Cycle/European Multidisciplinary Platform Against Criminal Threats (EMPACT), which is the EU mechanism enabling structured cooperation of law enforcement authorities, supported by relevant EU agencies, institutions and bodies, to fight serious and organised crime. The Organised Crime Strategy will build on the upcoming Europol’s Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment (SOCTA) report

EU Strategy on Combatting trafficking in human beings: The complexity of the trafficking phenomenon calls for a comprehensive response targeting all its aspects. The holistic Anti-trafficking Directive will be complemented by the comprehensive Strategy. In addition to the organised crime related initiatives, this strategy will propose a number of overarching initiatives to combat the trafficking crime in a coherent and complete manner. It will address the specificities of the offences from prevention through protection of victims to prosecution and conviction of traffickers; and it will aim to reduce demand that fosters trafficking; break the criminal model to supply victims of trafficking for exploitation purposes; and protect and empower the victims, especially women and children. It will provide for the direction as to stronger cooperation between law enforcement and judicial authorities; harnessing internet and communication technologies to prosecute criminals and protect victims; international cooperation; stepping up victims’ early identification and their protection and support.

Both Communications will cover the EU and international dimension, with a focus on those regions with which criminal groups operating in Europe have functional or organisational connections, such as Western Balkans, Neighbourhood countries, South America, Africa and South East Asia. The EU Policy Cycle identifies the priorities to fight against serious international and organised crime, including in particular, trafficking of illicit goods such as drugs, trafficking of environmentally sensitive goods, such as wildlife, waste and chemicals, and human trafficking, which have strong international links. 10 International cooperation is therefore key to identify and tackle international ramifications of organised crime groups. The Organised Crime Strategy will provide the direction for collective action both within the EU as well as at international level, including through strategic and operational cooperation with third countries and international organisations and other external tools.

Consultation of citizens and stakeholders

Organised Crime Strategy: Possible initiatives that the Strategy will announce build on previous targeted consultations, such as exchanges with Member States on transposition and implementation of legislation, expert workshops, regular communication with the EP and the Council, bilateral dialogues with civil society organisations, experts and academia. In addition, the Commission will carry out targeted consultations, notably with Member States, during the drafting of this Strategy.

EU Strategy on Combatting trafficking in human beings: Regarding trafficking in human beings, extensive targeted consultations have taken place in 2020 with national authorities (EU network of national rapporteurs and equivalent mechanisms), civil society organisations (EU Civil Society Platform against trafficking in human beings); the coordination group of ten EU agencies and with international organisations and EU delegations. These consultations have provided substantial input from the most relevant stakeholders. The EU Strategy against trafficking in human beings will take into account the upcoming report of the European Parliament on the implementation of the Anti-trafficking Directive

The roadmap covering both communications will be open for feedback for 4 weeks.

Evidence base and data collection

Communications are policy documents setting out comprehensive policy approach and framework for further initiatives, and, as such, do not require impact assessment. They will build notably on Europol’s Serious and Organised Crime Threat Assessment (SOCTA) to be issued in the first half of 2021, and will draw on studies (e.g. on asset recovery and economic, social and human costs of trafficking in human beings) and European Commission’s reports (e.g. third progress report of the European Commission 11 , data report 12 ). Any legislative initiatives following from this Communication would be subject to subsequent impact assessment(s), in line with the better regulation guidelines.