Luxembourg is introducing an ANPR system

At a press conference, Interior Minister Léon Gloden, together with Deputy Director of Police Alain Engelhardt, announced the preparation of a bill to introduce ANPR - Automatic Number Plate Recognition. The move was pre-determined in the coalition agreement for 2023-2028 and is seen as a key tool in strengthening internal security.

The principle of ANPR's work is simple: the cameras record licence plates on the roads and automatically check them against national and international databases. In this way, police can respond more quickly to car thefts, missing persons, drug trafficking and even potential terrorist threats.

Gloden emphasised that this is not about creating a "surveillance state" but about the "point and proportionate" use of technology. "We are taking another important step in the fight against cross-border and organised crime. Data is the gold of the 21st century," the minister said.

For the police, ANPR will not only speed up investigations, but will be an "absolutely essential tool" in the real fight against crime, as Engelhardt noted. In a situation where every minute counts, instant access to information about the movement of suspicious vehicles can change the course of an investigation.

Nevertheless, such projects always provoke discussions about the limits of digital security. The question is whether Luxembourg, by strengthening police capabilities, will be able to maintain the traditionally high level of personal data protection that is the hallmark of the European legal system.