The EU police agency Europol will soon be able to step up efforts to fight terrorism, cybercrime and other criminal offenses, thanks to new rules up for final approval by the European Parliament on May 11, in Strasbourg. Data protection safeguards and democratic oversight tools are included in the new rules, the draft of which was agreed by Parliament and Council negotiators in November 2015. A feature of the new rules will enhance Europol's ability to meet terrorist threats, in particular by making it easier to set up specialized units to respond immediately to emerging threats.