Details of passengers flying in and out of Europe to be shared to track ISIS fighters

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Brussels under pressure to agree passenger name records (PNR) deal
Britain and France want all countries signed up to share information
Concerns have been expressed about the impact on passengers' privacy
Cameron blasts 'ridiculous' rules which leave security in the EU at risk

By Matt Chorley, Political Editor for MailOnline

Published: 09:54 EST, 23 November 2015 | Updated: 10:31 EST, 23 November 2015

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European leaders were today warned they must end 'ridiculous' delays which mean airlines do not have to share the names of suspected ISIS fighters returning home.

David Cameron called for an end to the situation which means countries outside the EU share more information than those in the 28-nation bloc.

It follows fears that ISIS fighters returning from Syria could arrive back in Europe to carry out more Paris-style atrocities.

David Cameron called for an end to the 'ridiculous' situation which means countries outside the EU share more information than those in the 28-nation bloc

The European Commission has pushed for the 'rapid implementation' of rules which would require countries to share passengers' name records (PNR) for all flights.

Brussels aims to have agreement by the end of the year on a controversial plan for the US-style sharing of air passenger name records, regarded as a key step for maintaining security within the passport-free Schengen zone.

However it is currently bogged down in wrangling with national governments after years of debate about whether it infringes people's right to privacy.

Speaking in Paris today, Mr Cameron said Britain is to step up intelligence sharing with France and other European partners.

'We must do more to tackle the threat of returning foreign fighters,' Mr Cameron added, including strengthening Europe's external borders.

'It is frankly ridiculous that we can get more information from countries outside the EU than we can from each other

Prime Minister David Cameron

'We must without further delay finally agree the rules that will enable us to share passenger name records.

'It is frankly ridiculous that we can get more information from countries outside the EU than we can from each other.'

He added: 'And we must do more to crack down on the trade in illegal firearms to stop them getting into the hands of terrorists who are determined to wreak such misery with them.'

Only the UK has a fully function flight records system, although France has recently passed laws allowing for airlines to pass PNR data to police and security forces.

Other EU states introducing their own PNR systems include Bulgaria, Estonia, Spain, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, The Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Finland and Sweden.

However, EU-wide legislation is unlikely to be agreed before the end of the year.

At a press conference following talks at the Elysee Palace, Mr Cameron said that he had offered France the use of a British airbase in Cyprus for air strikes on ISIS

A European Commission spokesman said: 'The final legislation should be an effective and efficient tool against terrorist travel in the EU, including all flights.

'PNR collection is necessary to substantially enhance the security of European citizens.

'We need to make sure that law enforcement authorities have access to data which is necessary to fight terrorism and serious transnational crime, in full respect of the principles of necessity and proportionality.'

Calls for more information about who is entering and leave the EU have grown since the Paris attacks on November 13 in which 130 people died.

French prosecutors have said that at least three of those involved in the Paris attacks had made their way to the country on a route through the Balkans used by refugees.

Two of the suicide bombers are thought to have got into Europe on Greek islands by pretending to be Syrian refugees.

And Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the mastermind behind the massacre, was able to slip in and out of Europe at least twice without arrest despite being subject to an international arrest warrant.

French authorities only discovered he was in Paris rather than Syria three days after the attacks.