European arrest warrant provides an efficient tool for extraditing people suspected of an offence from one EU country to another. The Commission's report assesses how Member States have implemented the European arrest warrant since 2007 and concludes that even if it fights cross-border crime, EU Member States can improve how the system operates.

The Commission's report assesses how Member States have implemented this tool since 2007 and takes stock of its operation so far. Member States issued 54,689 European arrest warrants between 2005 and 2009, leading to 11,630 suspects being surrendered. In addition, extradition before the arrest warrant used to take an average of one year, but this has now been cut to 16 days when the suspect agrees to surrender, or 48 days when they do not.

Vice-President and EU’s Justice Commissioner, Viviane Reding, highlighted that “National governments need to build up trust between their judicial systems so that the European arrest warrant works even more efficiently. In view of their important fundamental rights implications, European arrest warrants should not be issued mechanically, or automatically, for crimes that are not very serious such as bicycle theft."

With regard to the fundamental rights implications, the EU has already adopted legislation on the right to interpretation and translation in criminal proceedings  and proposed common rules to guarantee suspects are informed of their rights. Further measures are planned to ensure access to a lawyer and the right to communicate with family members and employers.