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17 Feb 18. May calls for new UK-EU security treaty. British prime minister offers concession on ECJ role in European Arrest Warrant after Brexit. European leaders have given a lukewarm response to Theresa May’s urgent appeal for a new security treaty between the EU and UK after Brexit, despite being offered a significant concession on the remit of the European Court of Justice. In a speech to the annual Munich Security Conference on Saturday, the British prime minister urged EU leaders to set aside “rigid institutional structures” or “deep-seated ideology” and fast track a deal on a new security partnership. In a move designed to smooth the way for a future security deal with the EU, Mrs May offered to carve out a special exemption on the remit of the European Court of Justice to oversee Britain’s continued involvement in pan-European crime fighting agencies like Europol and Eurojust, as well as the European Arrest Warrant. “When participating in EU agencies the UK will respect the remit of the European Court of Justice,” said the UK prime minister. But added the EU will have “to respect our unique status as a third country with our own sovereign legal order”. But speaking immediately after Mrs May, Jean-Claude Juncker said continued security co-operation between the UK and the EU could not be used as a bargaining chip for other areas of the Brexit negotiations. “She has a point,” the European Commission president said. “We need a strong security relationship between the UK and the EU. But we can’t mix it up with other issues. I don’t think we should throw defence policy and foreign policy considerations in the same pot.” Mrs May also committed to aligned rules on data sharing with the EU post-Brexit, vital for security agencies and police who currently rely on the fast exchange of information to check potential terrorist or criminal suspects in fellow EU states. On Friday spy chiefs from the UK, France and Germany made an unprecedented intervention, urging EU leaders not to jeopardise data sharing agreements when Britain leaves the bloc. Things would be so much easier if you stayed Wolfgang Ischinger Although hard line Brexiters may be suspicious of any move which undermines the UK’s judicial independence, Mrs May’s remarks on the ECJ were welcomed by pro EU politicians. Labour MP Yvette Cooper, chair of parliament’s home affairs select committee, tweeted: “Hope PM sticks with this. Membership of Europol, European Arrest Warrant and security information databases are vital to UK security and must not be jeopardised by hardliners’ approach to ECJ.” Mrs May insisted there was no reason to wait until a final Brexit deal was agreed to sign a new treaty on security. “We cannot delay discussions on this,” she said. “EU states have been clear how important it is. We must move with urgency to put in place the treaty to protect all citizens wherever they are in Europe.” Recommended May gives credible but uncompelling view on post-Brexit defence 5 concerns for UK-EU defence after Brexit UK aims to keep financial rules close to EU after Brexit While Charles Grant, director at think-tank the European Centre for Reform, described the speech as “commendably serious”, others were less impressed with the tone. The former deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said: “Hectoring foreigners about the ills of rigid ideology while pursuing an ideologically rigid Brexit won’t help.” Mrs May’s speech, one of six over the next few weeks by senior cabinet ministers which will set out Britain’s post Brexit vision ahead of crucial European talks next month, was also partly overshadowed by questions from delegates about a second referendum. Wolfgang Ischinger, chair of the Munich Security Conference and a former German ambassador to the US, told Mrs May Brexit was “extremely regrettable”, adding “thi