The European Union is preparing to spend up to €1 billion per year on new ‘research’ into surveillance and control technologies, according to Arming Big Brother, a new report by the Transnational Institute (TNI) and Statewatch.

“Arms industry lobbying is leading to the creation of a powerful new internal security-industrial complex,” says Ben Hayes, author of the report.
 
Arming Big Brother lifts the lid on the secretive committees and arms industry lobbying that led to the creation of the European Security Research Programme (ESRP). 

“The EU is basically funding the diversification of the ‘military-industrial complex’ into the highly profitable internal security field”, said Hayes.
 
“The militarisation of policing and border controls will not prevent crime or terrorism”, said Hayes, “it does nothing to address ‘root causes’ while posing a massive threat to civil liberties”.
 
Press release (pdf)
Five page Summary (pdf)
Copy of full report (pdf)

Further information:
 
Ben Hayes, Statewatch
t: +44 (0)20 8802 1882
ben@statewatch.org                                      

Wilbert van der Zeijden, Transnational Institute
+31 (0)20 662 6608
wilbert@tni.org