Commission Defends Air Traffic Data Deal

The European Commission refused on Monday to withdraw a controversial agreement with the United States on the transfer of airline passenger data to American authorities, as MEPs threatened to seek a ruling from the EU's top court on the matter. The European Parliament had given the Commission until Monday to withdraw the EU-US passenger data transfer agreement, threatening otherwise to vote on Monday on whether to refer the matter to the European Court of Justice. In a flurry of last minute activity, parliament chief Pat Cox decided to postpone the vote until Wednesday to allow MEPs to discuss their concerns with how the data will be used with External Relations Commissioner Chris Patten. (EUobserver.com)