Telephone and internet data should be kept for a year to help authorities track terrorists, the European Union's Big Five countries said yesterday, increasing pressure on other member states to agree to standard rules on data storage.

Monitoring and storing telecoms data is seen as vital for fighting terrorism but the EU does not yet have common rules on how long companies must store records of phone calls and internet use.The plans, outlined by Otto Schily, German interior minister, are likely to involve retaining the addresses of websites visited and storing telephone numbers dialled although the content of the conversations would not be recorded. They are likely to spark criticism from civil liberties groups amid fears they threaten privacy. They will also demand much work from telecoms companies.