Opinion

INTERVIEW: In the latest in a series of interviews with leading figures involved in the research and investigation of organised crime, Policing Insight’s Chris Allen spoke to criminologist and author Professor Dick Hobbs about the impossibility of eradicating organised crime, the importance of localised knowledge in understanding criminal activity, and whether the term ‘organised crime’ really has any value.

OPINION: UK policing budgets remain under pressure, and spend on IT often takes the hit; but Simon Hall, CEO of police digital mobility platform PoliceBox, believes that approaching expenditure on Software-as-a-Service and cloud platforms as an operational rather than capital cost could overcome the budget barriers while also improving forces’ technological capabilities.

OPINION: South Africa’s Defence Minister recently lamented the low levels of public trust in policing; research by Dr Benjamin Roberts and Dr Steven Gordon of the Human Sciences Research Council found that while a lack of confidence in policing is nothing new, levels dipped in 2021, and suggest steps such as increasing policing accountability, reducing the militaristic police ethos and promoting competent and ethical leadership will need to be taken to restore that confidence.

OPINION: Forensic science is often overlooked as a niche part of policing, but after six months as the new National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) Forensic Lead, Chief Constable Nick Dean argues that forensics is vital for enabling crime investigation and prevention, and sets out a raft of changes which could help policing restore public trust.

OPINION: To mark World Autism Acceptance Week, South Wales Police Superintendent Marc Attwell breaks down some of the common myths around autism, and explains how being autistic has helped him in his policing career.

OPINION: HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary in Scotland, Gill Imery QPM, leaves her post tomorrow (1 April) after four years leading HMICS; Mrs Emery, who will be succeeded by Craig Naylor (currently Deputy Director of Investigations at the National Crime Agency), shared her reflections on the challenges and achievements for the Inspectorate and Police Scotland during a tumultuous period of policing globally.

OPINION: With 75% of all suicides by men, and trauma and mental ill-health acknowledged as significant issues for those within policing, suicide prevention among male police officers is increasingly recognised as an area where more needs to be done; freelance mental health specialist Toni White highlights some of the signs that forces and colleagues should be looking for, and the steps that need to be taken to support officers and reduce loss of life.

OPINION: Having spent six years as part of the team leading the UK’s Police Superintendents’ Association, Chief Superintendent Paul Griffiths completed his tenure as President last week, and shared his thoughts and reflections on the challenges and achievements during his time in the national office of the PSA.

INTERVIEW: In the latest in a series of interviews with leading figures involved in the research and investigation of organised crime, Policing Insight’s Chris Allen spoke to Sir Jon Murphy, Professor of Advanced Policing Studies at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU) and former Chief Constable of Merseyside Police about the untapped academic resource in fighting organised crime, targeting criminal communications, and the challenges of technological change.

INTERVIEW: Once a hotbed of 1970s counterculture, Austin in Texas has a reputation as a progressive, fast-changing city, with all the policing challenges that a modern urban environment brings; Policing Insight’s Christine Townsend spoke to Austin Police Department Chief Joseph Chacon about meeting those challenges – including recruitment, community safety and racial inequality – and his own style of leadership.

OPINION: As a global leader in online safety, Australia was the natural destination for European Commission delegates looking to learn more and share best practice around online regulation and child protection ahead of introducing new European legislation; Julie Inman Grant, Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, believes the visit marked a watershed moment of international collaboration in the fight against online child sexual exploitation.

OPINION: With public trust and confidence in UK policing currently a widely debated topic, Peter Edge, former SIO and Head of Training for Merseyside Police, looks at the importance of recognising and retaining both explicit and tacit knowledge within policing, and how addressing the issue effectively can help to strengthen the relationship with the public.

OPINION: Proactive policing strategies can be key tools in tackling crimes that blight neighbourhoods – but over-used or applied in isolation, they can do severe damage to community relations; Andrew Trevino, a Detective Investigator with San Antonio PD and passionate advocate for proactive policing, looks at some of the main proactive strategies employed by US forces, and shares his own experiences of why respect is an equally essential part of the officer toolkit.

INTERVIEW: In the latest in a series of interviews with leading figures involved in the research and investigation of organised crime, Policing Insight’s Chris Allen spoke to Ian Broughton, a former detective sergeant and specialist drug advisor with London’s Metropolitan Police and now a drugs expert witness and trainer, about targeting drug gangs, deterring criminals, and the challenges police face with encryption.

FEATURE: When a police officer behaves in a way that harms individuals, colleagues and the community they service, it’s important that others intervene as early as possible to ensure those actions and attitudes don’t escalate; former Scottish police officer and active bystander trainer Graham Goulden explains the thinking behind the approach, and what forces need to be doing to equip officers with effective intervention skills.

OPINION: For over a decade, public safety officials have recognised that the capacity to retain current highly trained staff and recruit next generation professionals is central to public service success; the University of Southampton’s Dr Fatema Zaghloul, and Justin Partridge of the University of Leeds, explore talent management in the public safety sector and reflect on previous endeavours to attract next generation professionals.

FEATURE: The lengthy ‘vaccine mandate’ protests in front of New Zealand’s Parliament in Wellington have been challenging to police, and have attracted a wide range of extreme activists; Massey University Professor Paul Spoonley argues that such extremism has been evident in New Zealand society for some time – more information and action will be needed to tackle it going forwards.

OPINION: As the search for a new commissioner of London’s Metropolitan Police Service gets underway, change consultant Luftur Ali, Senior Policy Advisor to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and a former Associate of the College of Policing, sets out some of the key changes he believes the force needs to make – and the challenges facing the next head of the Met – if it is to improve community relationships and regain its position as an employer of choice.

OPINION: In a week which marks the anniversary of the publication of the Macpherson Report, West Midlands Assistant Chief Constable Matt Ward shares an insight into personal responses to racism, and argues that unless policing can accept it has treated some communities less favourably than others, those communities will have no reason to co-operate with the service – a vicious cycle that threatens police legitimacy.

OPINION: Former Greater Manchester Police Chief Constable Sir Peter Fahy believes that many of the ‘reforms’ of policing over the past 20 years – including the introduction of PCCs and the College of Policing, and the closure of the Police Leadership College – have weakened the service’s ability to develop long-term strategies or a professional independent voice, and failed to address the deeply embedded issues of misogyny and racism in police culture.

OPINION: Against the backdrop of the many recent debates about negative cultures in UK policing, Disabled Police Association President Simon Nelson argues that it is down to leadership to set the tone for an acceptable workplace culture – but all of us have role to play in ending institutional discrimination and building successful, supportive teams.

INTERVIEW: In the latest in a series of interviews with leading figures involved in the research and investigation of organised crime, Policing Insight’s Chris Allen spoke to Ian Davidson, a former detective superintendent with Derbyshire Police and now an independent researcher, about the importance of experience and understanding, the need for resources to back up strategies, and what we really know – or think we know – about organised crime.

OPINION: Severe injuries leading to significant bleeding – whether caused by criminal acts such as knife crime or terror attacks, or through accidents – can easily result in loss of life; but the availability of bleed control packs, and the training in how to use them, can enable the public to intervene and save lives, believes Reuben Gilmore, Sales Director at Aero Healthcare.

OPINION: The timing of the recent resignation of Metropolitan Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick surprised many, but the damage done to public trust by a series of controversies over the previous 15 months meant the decision was far from a shock; Mark Cooper, who developed and ran the first PEEL Police Legitimacy inspections for what is now HMICFRS, explains why – and what the next Met Commissioner can do to restore confidence in the force.