Analysis

FEATURE: The Coronavirus pandemic has put huge pressures on the criminal justice system, and could have an impact on the courts and policing for many years to come; Policing Insight Deputy Editor Sarah Gibbons looks at two recent reports that both warn of critical risks and the need for a radical overhaul.

Analysis: Amid concerns that rising levels of large scale VAT fraud now represent a national security threat, Andrew Staniforth examines how new working arrangements between the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) and Europol will be vital in ensuring that essential information sharing mechanisms are in place for effective investigations.

FEATURE: Now the dust has settled on the Brexit agreement, Policing Insight’s Chris Allen examines the impact that the UK’s deal with the EU will have on information exchange, collaboration and co-operation, and the policing of serious and organised crime.

ANALYSIS: Ports have long been magnets for serious and organised crime - but in the post-Brexit environment these risks are magnified and the capacity of the UK police to counter them limited by the end of access to European databases. Dr Anna Sergi of the University of Essex analyses the risks.

ANALYSIS: Devon and Cornwall Police recently announced a scheme to pay volunteer special constables an enhanced allowance for completing a minimum number of hours; Policing Insight’s Ian Wiggett explores whether this could be the first step towards establishing a paid policing reserve, and how other services ensure they can call on vital added experience in times of greatest need.

FEATURE: The UK Biometrics Commissioner has highlighted variations between forces in the retention of DNA, software inadequacies in the fight against terrorism, and missed opportunities for the international exchange of samples that may have put the public at greater risk of crime, reports Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons.

FEATURE: As advances in technology made drones more accessible and easy to use, so growing concerns about their potential use by terrorist organisations prompted the launch of the European DroneWISE project; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth reports on the project’s operational briefing which contains clear messages for first responders, police and security agencies.

ANALYSIS: Former senior police officer Richard James of community engagement specialists Intensive Engagement shares the company’s methodology on working with communities to reduce crime, and how the approach can be applied to a range of other social issues.

FEATURE: New Zealand has faced a significant challenge in tackling domestic violence, but a new multi-agency, holistic approach to ‘family harm’ – centred around Te Taanga Manawa, the new multi-disciplinary hub pioneered in South Auckland – could lead to much greater success in meeting that challenge, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: The death of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter protests have focused attention on race and policing around the world, including in the UK; now a new report by the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners has highlighted existing and ongoing efforts to tackle racial disparity and disproportionality in policing, as Policing Insight's Tina Orr Munro reports.

ANALYSIS: There's a common belief that cybercriminals are typically operating in organised crime groups, and are well rewarded for their efforts; but new research by Dr Roberto Musotto of Edith Cowan University and Professor David Wall of the University of Leeds suggests that in reality they are more like business workers, usually achieving relatively low returns.

ANALYSIS: As a tumultuous 2020 draws to a close, Katherine Van Gurp, Chief Executive Officer of the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency, explores how some of the main changes and shifting trends of recent times have collided with the pressures of the present, and what this may mean for policing and wider society moving forwards.

ANALYSIS: Many police and support agencies have spoken of the rise in domestic abuse cases due to the COVID-19 lockdown, but empirical evidence has been lacking; now new research by Dr Katrin Hohl of City, University of London and Dr Kelly Johnson of Durham University has revealed both the scale and complex nature of the pandemic’s impact on domestic abuse, and the need for police to prepare for a post-lockdown surge in reporting.

FEATURE: New research highlights 'massive inequalities’ in the UK murder rates for different ethnic communities, with homicide levels more than 20 times higher per 100,000 of the population among some black age groups, compared to the white community; now researchers are calling for closer scrutiny of the figures to enable forces to tackle racial disparity more effectively, reports Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons.

FEATURE: The recent discovery that the world’s most fertile breeding ground for heroin is also home to the plant used to make the main ingredient in crystal meth went largely unnoticed in the mainstream media; but as Policing Insight’s Chris Allen explains, it has huge consequences for organised crime both internationally and in the UK.

LONG READ: Modern slavery and human trafficking are transnational crimes that could easily flourish in the COVID-19 pandemic conditions of economic uncertainty and isolation; in this long-read article, Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons looks at efforts in the UK and US to tackle this illegal human trade which often targets society’s most vulnerable.

ANALYSIS: Counterfeiting is now a global problem accounting for more than three per cent of world trade, securing profits for criminals and in some cases putting consumers’ health at risk; in this briefing paper published by the UK’s Dawes Centre for Future Crime at UCL, Dr Chiaki Crews, Prof Robert Speller and Dr Rob Moss set out some of the sector challenges in tackling counterfeiting, and highlight the key questions for policy makers.

FEATURE: Online child sexual exploitation is a growing crime with horrific consequences around the world, but a global task force led by the FBI is making significant inroads, catching offenders and rescuing children; Policing Insight Contributing Editor Tina Orr Munro reports from the UK’s Internet Intelligence and Investigations Conference on the success of the VCACITF.

FEATURE: When a convicted rapist admitted that he planned to hunt down and attack the same woman again once he was released from prison, defensive profiling helped to protect his terrified victim; Policing Insight Contributing Editor Tina Orr Munro reports from the first day of the UK’s Internet Intelligence and Investigations Conference on this invaluable internet-based approach to safeguarding victims and witnesses.

ANALYSIS: Police use of stop and search has been widely scrutinised and regularly debated; but as Dr Mike Rowe of the University of Liverpool and Dr Geoff Pearson of the University of Manchester discovered during a seven-year study of two police forces, ‘stop and accounts’ and vehicle stops receive much less attention, yet can be just as damaging if used disproportionately.

ANALYSIS: How does policing affect people’s willingness to comply with COVID-19 restrictions, and does the public support the actions police may have to take? Having surveyed public opinion across 10 British cities at regular intervals during the pandemic, Dr Arabella Kyprianides, Dr Julia Yesberg, Dr Zoe Hobson and Prof Ben Bradford of UCL, Prof Jonathan Jackson and Dr Krisztián Pósch (LSE), and Dr Reka Solymosi of the University of Manchester discuss the findings of the Policing the Pandemic study.

ANALYSIS: Cases of sexual misconduct by police officers are still relatively rare, but such an abuse of position can have serious implications for the public’s view of policing, and the trust of the police as an institution; PhD researcher and serving police officer Fay Sweeting explores the scale of the problem, and what forces could be doing better to tackle the issue.

ANALYSIS: A second report published today by the Institute for Government examining the impact of COVID-19 on public services has highlighted a record backlog of criminal cases and a rapid expansion of the use of remote hearings; Nick Davies, the Institute’s programme director leading its work on public services, outlines the key findings.

ANALYSIS: The horrific murder of a teacher in a Paris terror attack has shone the spotlight again on radicalisation in schools and education; but as Policing Insight contributor Andrew Staniforth reports, inexcusable delays over the review of the UK’s Prevent strategy – and ongoing attempts to have the provision for review removed altogether – are failing the police and their partners engaged in tackling radicalisation.