Analysis

ANALYSIS: In the latest in our series of articles on continuing professional development in policing, Dr Emma Williams of the Open University’s Centre for Policing Research and Learning and Dr Tom Cockcroft of Leeds Beckett University examine the vital role that tutor constables play in supporting new recruits, and what more the service should do to provide structure and purpose for police tutoring programmes.

ANALYSIS: A recent operation backed by Europol and Eurojust saw police arrest more than 100 organised crime suspects in Latvia and Lithuania, and close down a scam call centre operation generating millions of euros; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth looks at the operation itself, and how European collaborations are playing a vital role in tackling financial crime and large-scale money laundering.

ANALYSIS: Increasing police numbers can reduce crime rates, yet England and Wales have one of the lowest officer-population ratios in Europe; with crime likely to become increasingly complex, Social Market Foundation Senior Researcher Richard Hyde calls on police and policymakers to invest further in workforce recruitment, to contain and reduce the current high levels of crime.

ANALYSIS: As the conflict in Ukraine continues, so too does the pressure to ensure that international crimes committed during the Russian invasion are fully investigated and prosecuted; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth looks at the steps being taken by EU states to establish the collaboration and co-operation needed to respond to such crimes, and the role law enforcement is likely to play in bringing people to justice.

ANALYSIS: Officers of the Nigeria Police Force are considering industrial action to protest against the lack of funding, low salaries and poor working conditions they face; Dr Lanre Ikuteyijo, Senior Lecturer at Obafemi Awolowo University and a police affairs expert, explains the implications of the strike, and how Nigeria can improve the welfare of its police officers.

FEATURE: Five years after the Westminster Bridge attack in which PC Keith Palmer and four members of the public died, a new review by Lord Toby Harris into London’s preparedness and ability to respond to potential terror attacks has found “very substantial progress” – but warns against complacency, and highlights the damaging impact of austerity and funding cuts on counter-terror policing and wider partnership networks, as Policing Insight’s Keith Potter reports.

FEATURE: An independent report into the UK’s efforts to target illicit profits from the illegal wildlife trade has called for a more nuanced, consistent and multi-level analytical approach to counter the laundering of illicit proceeds, as Policing Insight’s Chris Allen reports.

FEATURE: The COVID-19 pandemic has seen an increase in cybercrime and online fraud, and with it a new, complex scam involving dating sites and cryptocurrencies; PhD candidate and Research Fellow Carlo Handy Charles explains how organised crime has pioneered the sophisticated ‘pig-butchering’ scams.

ANALYSIS: In the latest in our series of articles on continuing professional development (CPD) in policing, Dr Ahmed Kadry and Jo Lambert of the Open University’s Policing Organisation and Practice team explore the opportunities for expanding the Police Education Qualification Framework to include special constables, and the benefits this could bring – both for forces and for individual officers.

ANALYSIS: With the electronic communications landscape changing significantly and quickly, existing legislation covering law enforcement electronic surveillance has struggled to keep pace; Analyst Dr Teagan Westendorf and specialist Jocelinn Kang, both of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, take a closer look at the country’s planned legislative reform around electronic surveillance, and why balancing security and liberty will be essential in any new law.

ANALYSIS: The images of child refugees fleeing the conflict in Ukraine have been among some of the most disturbing to emerge from the war; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth looks at the risks posed in neighbouring countries by human trafficking gangs, and efforts from the European Commission to fund new projects to counter human trafficking across the continent.

FEATURE: In his final State of Policing assessment, Chief Inspector of Constabulary Sir Tom Winsor – who leaves the HMICFRS at the end of this month – has praised the efforts of officers and staff, but highlighted significant concerns including the fragility of the 43-force model in England and Wales, the urgent need to restore public confidence, and compromises required between funding and public expectations, as Policing Insight’s Keith Potter reports.

ANALYSIS: Court cases around the world often depend on the independent deliberations and judgments of juries; but with jurors susceptible to their own biases, steps can be taken to ensure that such biases are balanced to prevent miscarriages of justice, as Dr Lee Curley and Dr James Munro of the Open University and Dr Itiel Dror of University College London, explain.

ANALYSIS: With the heightened global focus on legitimacy and professional standards within policing, a new report by Manhattan Institute Adjunct Fellow Dorothy Moses Schulz explores the issues around rogue ‘wandering cops’, including the recruitment pressures on police departments, efforts to make decertification easier and introduce more widespread licensing, and the need for clear language in any future legislation.

ANALYSIS: As global police leaders gather in Dubai for the World Police Summit, and with international attention focused on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Dr Victoria Herrington, Director Knowledge at the Australian Institute of Police Management (AIPM), explores what the institution of policing stands for, why it needs to care about what’s happening in Ukraine, and what we could and should be doing to promote a shared responsibility for public safety.

ANALYSIS: As well as changing society, the Covid pandemic has changed crime, as the disarray caused by rapidly introduced polices at national and international levels has presented all sorts of opportunities for criminals; Policing Insight’s Chris Allen examines one particular growth area of illicit activity – the sale of counterfeit COVID-19 passports.

FEATURE: Examples of forensic entomology – the use of insects in criminal investigations – can be traced back to the 13th century, and today flies and other insects can help to identify everything from a murder victim’s use of ketamine or cocaine, to the chemicals used in pet poisonings; Forensic Biologist Paola Magni of Murdoch University in Western Australia explains the forensic insights we can already gain from flies, and what more we could learn.

ANALYSIS: Fraud is now the most common crime in England and Wales, costing the UK economy £137bn each year; in this article, Richard Hyde, Scott Corfe and Bill Anderson-Samways of the Social Market Foundation (SMF) examine the inadequacy of police resource dedicated to tackling the problem, and call on the Government to take a comprehensive ‘systems approach’ to tackling fraud, enacting reforms that can endure over decades.

ANALYSIS: In the latest in our series of articles on continuing professional development (CPD), Dr Paul Walley, Director of Learning at the Open University’s Centre for Policing Research and Learning, looks at how combinations of learning options – including experiential learning cycles, and ‘flipping the classroom’ – can lead to ‘light bulb moments’ and more effective outcomes for policing CPD.

ANALYSIS: While the digital revolution has created new methods for criminals to sexually exploit and traffic people, it has also increased the ability of law enforcement and others to target offenders and protect those at risk; in this briefing paper Nicole Munns and Dr Gabriel Katz of Justice & Care, which rescues victims of slavery and human trafficking around the world, explore some of the challenges and opportunities offered by the growth of digital intelligence.

FEATURE: The final report of the Strategic Review of Policing in England and Wales calls for radical change and a fundamental redesign to create a service that can keep pace with the public safety demands of the 21st century; Police Foundation Director Rick Muir, who led the organisation’s work on the Review, sets out the key steps he believes the service needs to take to meet the capacity, capability and organisational challenges of the future.

ANALYSIS: As events get underway around the world to mark International Women’s Day – with a theme of ‘Gender equality today, for a sustainable tomorrow’ – Dr Sarah Jane Fox of the University of Leicester looks at the continuing efforts to accelerate women’s equality both in policing and wider society, and the challenges and barriers that still remain.

FEATURE: The issue of poor mental health in UK policing and the impact of high-risk, high-stress roles has long been recognised, but despite efforts to address the problem, significant challenges in encouraging and enabling officers to access support still remain; Mike Isherwood, founder and CEO of Softable and Chair of the BAPCO Business Group, explores some of the key issues and barriers to support, as well as his own fundraising and awareness challenge as the ‘10K-A-DAY GUY’.

ANALYSIS: The combination of a rapidly growing population and historically low staffing levels means that officers within Toronto Police Service (TPS) face increased risk of stress, physical and mental injury, and struggle to deliver the best service to the city’s community; to help address those challenges, Toronto Police Association (TPA) has been working with TPS to analyse officer workloads and identify improved alternative shift patterns, as TPA President Jon Reid explains.