UPDATE:
VoA: EU Parliament Rejects Bank Data Deal with US
FT: European parliament rejects US data swap deal
Did you ever wish for representatives of the people who actually protect the privacy of the citizens from government intrusion? Representatives of the people who are "patriot" in the best sense of substance, not just euphemistic in abusing the term as an acronym for an internal espionage act?
Just take a look at what is happening at the European Parliament concerning the SWIFT agreement the European Union member states' governments ("European Council") unanimously concluded with the US last fall.
Last week, EurActiv suggested what was to come:
MEPs today (21 January) clashed with EU ministers, calling for a delay to the entry into force of the so-called SWIFT agreement, a EU-US deal maintaining the transfer of EU citizens' banking data to US investigators. MEPs have been fuming about this issue since the Council on 30 November 2009 framed an interim agreement with the US, without allowing the European Parliament to vote on it.
Earth Times reports:
... "I have the impression that technology has become the new religion in counterterrorism. That's not the way," argued German liberal MEP Alexander Alvaro. ...
Der Spiegel (Germany) reports:
The European Parliament is likely to spike a deal which would allow US terrorism investigators access to European bank transfer data. Privacy advocates oppose the deal ... "I expect there will be a relatively large coalition against it," he said. "The (European) capitals will place a lot of pressure on members of parliament, but we will resist. ...
Well ...