EU security plan to be hammered out in November

BRUSSELS, May 15 (Reuters) European Union governments and soccer body UEFA will draw up a blueprint in November for security at matches across the continent, officials said today.

They said the meeting on Nov. 28 in Brussels will address measures such as stadium security, policing techniques and stricter punishments.

The decision follows an increase in soccer-related violence across the EU in recent months.

Fans and police clashed at Champions League matches in both Spain and Italy, while a policeman was killed in rioting at a Serie A match in Sicily in February.

''There is a lot of work going on behind the scenes and there are a lot of contacts going on between the various bodies,'' Jonathan Hill, UEFA's EU representative, told Reuters.

''The plan is that these meetings will continue and that we will agree a blueprint at a meeting of sports and justice ministers, EU representatives, police forces, soccer authorities and representatives of soccer supporters in November.'' A spokesman for EU Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini confirmed that the meeting would be hosted by the EU executive Commission with a view to ''formulating an EU-wide strategy''.

UEFA officials are due to meet Europol, which represents police authorities, soon while Frattini is likely to meet UEFA President Michel Platini in June.

Some of the ideas include basic EU rules for police and matchday security personnel, minimum stadium standards, a special EU police intelligence unit and harmonisation of legislation at EU level.

Platini has already called for the creation of an international police force to help tackle hooliganism as well as corruption, while EU ministers proposed the introduction of EU-wide standards for stadium security.

''The problem is that there needs to be a more co-ordinated approach and there needs to be collective responsibility,'' Hill said.

His view was echoed by the European Confederation of Police (EUROCOP). It described security standards for soccer across the different 27 countries as ''an unworkable patchwork''.

''There are too many different approaches and rules,'' a spokesman said.

''We need more cross-border cooperation and intelligence. But more importantly we need to make sure that each country punishes those offenders as strictly as in another member state, so as to cut out the loopholes.'' REUTERS TB RK2305