Opinion

OPINION: County lines drug dealing was defined in the UK by the National Crime Agency in 2015, and has evolved considerably over the last 10 years, with some believing the term itself is now outdated; University of Liverpool Graduate Teaching Fellow and PhD Candidate Jenna Carr, a former county lines caseworker, argues that the evidence of the past decade suggests policing-led crackdowns on county lines are largely ineffective, and that public health and addressing the demand for drugs should be the priority.

OPINION: Tensions between Russia and NATO are reaching new levels, but any conflict is likely to take place in the “grey zone of modern warfare”, argues Paul Goldenberg, Chief Advisor with Rutgers University Miller Police Center, with the sabotage of critical infrastructure, drone incursions and information warfare all tactics that will mean police – particularly those in Nordic countries – have a vital role to play in ensuring national security and stability as well as protecting democracy.

OPINION: With the policing focus in London inevitably drawn towards next week’s Notting Hill Carnival, Policing Insight’s Graham Wettone – a former Metropolitan Police officer and public order specialist who was involved in the policing of Carnival for 28 years – looks at the challenges of the event, the fears around public safety and the pressures of funding, and considers what would be the price to pay for a safer and more financially stable Carnival.

ANALYSIS: Recent horrific events and the accompanying media headlines have led some to believe Australia is in the grip of a knife crime epidemic; in this final article in a series from The Conversation on weapons and violence in Australia, Bond University Associate Professor Terry Goldsworthy explores the statistics around violent crime and weapons offences across Australia, and how the public perception in some quarters of a significant rise in crime is not reflected by the data.

OPINION: The story of the Special Air Service (SAS), entertainingly told (with some creative licence) in the BBC SAS Rogue Heroes drama series, highlights the impact of embracing the unorthodox and encouraging innovative and analytical ideals when traditional approaches are not succeeding; Jonathan Jackson, Associate Professor of Policing and Investigation at Leeds Trinity University, believes policing in the UK would do well to learn from those approaches in tackling some of the current complex challenges.

ANALYSIS: Police wellbeing is increasingly a matter for serious concern in the UK, highlighted most recently by the results of the National Police Wellbeing Survey; Dr Ashley Cartwright and PhD Researcher Ellie Hutchison of the University of Huddersfield’s Crime and Policing Research Centre believe new research into individuals’ character strengths could lead to an evidence-based interventions programme that will proactively build psychological resources to help shape a healthier, more resilient police service.

ANALYSIS: Recent horrific events and the accompanying media headlines have led some to believe Australia is in the grip of a knife crime epidemic; in this third article in a series from The Conversation on weapons and violence in Australia, Griffith University Professor Janet Ransley warns that while police and politicians are focusing on tackling weapons in public, current approaches have little effect, with stronger efforts to target knife use in domestic violence likely to have greater impact.

ANALYSIS: Recent horrific events and the accompanying media headlines have led some to believe Australia is in the grip of a knife crime epidemic; in this second article in a series from The Conversation on weapons and violence in Australia, Macquarie University lecturers Professor Alex Simpson and Dr Vince Hurley argue that the latest crime data suggests the use of weapons and violent crime in the country is decreasing, and that compared to many other others, Australia fares well on these issues.

ANALYSIS: The recent Independent Criminal Courts Review endorsed expanding the use of out-of-court resolutions – which can provide effective resolutions to crimes, and save victims from the stress and lengthiness of court – but what do victims think? New research by Transform Justice highlights considerable support for the approach among victims of crime, and identifies some of the reasons behind their dissatisfaction with the process – including lessons for policing – as Transform Justice Research and Policy Officer Ella Thomson explains.

ANALYSIS: In the first in a series of articles from The Conversation on weapons and violence in Australia, Griffith University Principal Research Fellow Dr Samara McPhedran looks behind claims by the media and politicians that the country is in the middle of a violent crime crisis to explore the statistics and the real picture when it comes to the use of weapons and violent crime rates in Australia.

ANALYSIS: Prevent training – particularly the duty-to-refer protocol – as part of the UK’s anti-terrorism provision does not serve its purpose; a study at one university in England identified issues faced by those lecturers currently charged with the responsibility to implement it, explains Nicole Lees, a Lecturer in Security, Intelligence and Investigative Practice at the University of Cumbria.

OPINION: Given the abundance of digital data now circulating in society, open-source intelligence (OSINT) offers unparalleled value to investigators, but the volume of material available can be daunting for those new to OSINT, and even leave experienced investigators overwhelmed; Brett Redman, Head of Intelligence at Blackdot Solutions, provides a practical introduction for investigators on applying OSINT with clarity and purpose.

OPINION: UK politicians from all parties have previously invoked crime as a threat, and their own brand of politics as the solution, warn criminology professors Emily Gray and Stephen Farrall – and distorting its nature can erode public trust in the institutions tasked with protecting the public, foster punitive and ineffective policy responses, and leave whole communities feeling targeted, criminalised or unsafe, based on selective and often sensational narratives.

FEATURE: With the policing landscape changing “faster than ever”, Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) Learning and Development lead David Bamber, and Dr Sean Bell, Lecturer in Policing Organisation and Practice at the Open University, explain why the two organisations are working together to introduce a “fully accredited, recognised and validated programme in professional practice” for PFEW reps to ensure they have the skills required to take on a role that is “becoming more challenging”.

OPINION: AI-enhanced surveillance tools are already transforming policing, says Milestone Systems Fellow Dr Barry Norton, and police forces that leverage intelligent video will be harder for criminals to outsmart, better informed, and faster to the scene – while those that fail to modernise risk falling behind not just in technology, but in public trust and effectiveness.

OPINION: Despite data showing an overall fall in most crime over the last 30 years, the public perception in Britain is one of an increasingly lawless country; the public’s concerns matter, and Patrick Olajide, a Senior Researcher in Crime, Justice and Security at the National Centre for Social Research, believes that how the press report on crime is one factor worsening those fears, by painting an incomplete, distorted and – at worst – dishonest picture of crime and justice in the UK, which has a damaging impact both on communities and those working within the criminal justice system.

OPINION: After significant optimism about the reform of policing in South Africa following the first democratic elections in 1994, the country’s police service has becoming increasingly politicised and under the control of ANC insiders, argues the University of Pretoria’s Dr Ivor Chipkin, with devastating results both for public trust and crime rates.

OPINION: Police forces and departments across the United States and around the world are facing staffing challenges as well as a “rapidly shifting ecosystem of expectations, resources, and alternatives”, warns public safety consultant Tim Kucerovy; he argues that applying Porter’s Five Forces – a recognized tool for understanding the dynamics shaping an industry – to diagnose the external pressures facing law enforcement can help agencies to meet and overcome those challenges.

OPINION: In the latest in a regular series of articles from the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC), Avon and Somerset PCC Clare Moody, the APCC’s joint lead on victims and violence against women and girls (VAWG), sets out some of the latest developments in the continuing efforts to significantly reduce VAWG, support victims, and find solutions to a society-wide problem – while reiterating calls for stable, long-term funding to get the job done.

ANALYSIS: Retention in policing organisations is a challenge for agencies in many countries, and is often closely associated with employees’ intrinsic motivation and need fulfilment, which in turn are influenced by leaders; Naomi Davis-Crane, a Senior Lecturer at Liverpool John Moores University specialising in police leadership, puts forward an alternative model – the SERVANT approach – which employs a values-based approach to address some of the existing challenges.

OPINION: Australia is losing the fight to disrupt illicit drug supply chains – not for lack of effort, but because it needs additional weapons and new approaches – warns Dr John Coyne, Director of National Security Programs at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, who calls for a shift towards measuring law enforcement successes against disruption, deterrence and network degradation, rather than arrests, seizures and prosecutions.

INNOVATION: To address key areas of crime and vulnerability, UK constabularies can use visual analysis software to pull together data from myriad sources for the prevention of harm, the detection of crime, and the identification of risk; Seth Cooke, a former Avon and Somerset Police intelligence analyst and now i2 Group technical and tradecraft specialist, explains how this technology powerfully supports approaches to knife crime, antisocial behaviour, and violence against women and girls.

OPINION: With the UK spotlight on tackling violence against women and girls and a strong focus on domestic violence and abuse, Noor Da Silva, a Sexual and Domestic Abuse Service Manager in the UK’s East Midlands and one of the country’s 15 specialist Harmful Cultural Practice IDVAs, argues that it’s also time to address the gaps in current domestic abuse risk assessment tools which disproportionately endanger minoritised women.

OPINION: The wellbeing of police officers and staff has become increasingly important for policing organisations; but Graham Goulden, a former officer with a 30-year career and now a strong advocate for safe and supportive workplaces, believes the policing approach to wellbeing needs a major rethink, with leaders, supervisors, and officers and staff all having vital roles to play in building a truly supportive workplace culture.