National security and policing agencies - United Kingdom

INNOVATION: Following on from the recent Beyond Bureaucracy conference on artificial intelligence (AI) in the criminal justice system (CJS), independent policing and technology expert Giles Herdale explores some of the main opportunities and challenges facing police and the CJS in the successful development, adoption and implementation of effective AI technologies.

OPINION: The US first declared its ‘war on terror’ in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, and the impact of the approach was felt by policing in America and elsewhere; Liverpool John Moores University Policing Lecturer James Williams looks at the changing nature of US counter-terrorism since 9/11, the growing focus on domestic terrorism, and the increasing threat posed by online extremism and ‘lone wolf’ attacks.

ANALYSIS: Recent arrests and seizures suggest that drug traffickers are increasingly switching to chemically concealed cocaine (CCC) to move tonnes of shipments around the world, successfully passing through ports and airports undetected; in the first in a series of articles on CCC and organised crime, Policing Insight’s Chris Dalby looks at the background of this seismic shift in drug trafficking, the scale of the problem, and what steps law enforcement can take to meet some of the key challenges.

FREE SUBSCRIBER ACCESS: Policing Insight welcomes students and staff from Abu Dhabi's Rabdan Academy, in the United Arab Emirates, who now have FREE subscriber access with the start of a new organisation wide subscription. They join a community of readers from many other UK and international academic, government, police, criminal justice and emergency services organisations with an interest in progressive policing. Read on to find out how to use your FREE subscriber access.

INTERVIEW: In just over a year, the UK's Police National Computer is set to be replaced by the new Law Enforcement Data Service; Ian Weinfass spoke to those leading on the project for the Home Office and the police service about what the change will mean for officers, what else needs to happen, and the potential implications of not hitting the target date.

ANALYSIS: London Policing College Senior Lecturer and Consultant Dr Chris Allen explores the key terrorism threats facing the UK from ideological, religious and political perpetrators as well as state actors, and looks at the projected trends over the coming 12 months.

FEATURE: The first report in a two-part review of the police response to extensive disorder across England and Wales last summer has praised officers for their “immense bravery”, but has highlighted concerns over the capacity and capability of forces to respond to such widespread violent disorder, the speed with which resources are mobilised, and the wellbeing support for frontline officers, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: In the wake of the jihadist terror attack in New Orleans on New Year’s Day, Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth examines the concept of ‘leaderless jihad’ and explores the ongoing risk to countries in Europe (and further afield) highlighted by the recent European Union Terrorism Situation and Trend Report.

FEATURE: The Director General of MI5 recently confirmed that his agency’s counter-terrorism focus would have to be reduced to deal with “much more aggression” from state actors; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth looks at the nature of the security threat posed by state actors, and the vital role that policing has to play in combatting that threat.

INNOVATION: A portal developed in Humberside that allows victims to contact officers in charge of their case for updates rather than tie-up call handlers on force phone lines is also helping to provide a better service, according to those behind the plan; Ian Weinfass spoke to Humberside Police’s Scot Dunn and senior responsible officer for the NPCC’s digital public contact programme, DCC Simon Megicks, about the award-winning initiative.

OPINION: In response to the call for a new national Police Agency as set out in the recent ‘Fit for the Future’ paper published jointly by the Police Foundation and Leapwise Advisory, Canterbury Christ Church University Senior Lecturer in Policing, Dr David Lydon, suggests that, rather than pushing for greater centralisation, the cornerstone for effective police reform should be agility, inclusivity, and technological innovation.

OPINION: Former Police Scotland superintendent Martin Gallagher, now an author, journalist and terrorism expert, fears that causes on the left or politics maybe conflating – with supporters potentially moving from political agitation to political violence, in echoes of the 1970s – at a time when policing finds itself potentially blind to the threat, and adopting a position that many of the public view as radical.

FEATURE: Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has announced the most ambitious wave of policing reform for a decade – a new ‘National Centre of Policing’ to run support services for local forces, a new Home Office Police Performance Unit and co-designed police performance framework, and over £500 million of extra funding for forces across England and Wales, as Policing Insight’s James Sweetland reports.

OPINION: To coincide with the launch of a discussion paper on a stronger national centre for policing in England and Wales – jointly published by the Police Foundation and consultants Leapwise – Foundation Director Rick Muir and Leapwise Managing Director Tom Gash set out their arguments for a new national policing agency and a reformed approach to national decision-making.

FEATURE: With cuckooing – the exploitation of vulnerable people by drug gangs who take over their home – not currently classified by the Home Office as a specific crime, the true scale of the problem in the UK remains unclear; Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons spoke to North-West Regional County Lines Co-ordinator DI Adam Norton, and Intelligence Analyst and PhD candidate Ruth Lewin, about the nature of the crime, and what more can be done to identify and improve support for victims while also strengthening enforcement.

ANALYSIS: In the second in a two-part series marking the 30th anniversary of the police use of TASER, Policing Insight’s James Sweetland explores the current less-lethal weapons marketplace – dominated in the UK by TASER – and looks at concerns about monopoly supply, whether competition is crucial to driving efficiency and technology, and what the less-lethal alternatives could be, drawing on interviews with NPCC less-lethal weapons lead Chief Constable Lucy D’Orsi, Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Barber, and others.

FREE SUBSCRIBER ACCESS: Policing Insight welcomes staff from the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) who now have FREE subscriber access with the start of a new organisation wide subscription. They join a community of readers from many other UK and international government, police, criminal justice and emergency services organisations with an interest in progressive policing. Read on to find out how to use your FREE subscriber access.

INTERVIEW: Human trafficking and exploitation stretches far beyond borders. Former MPS Superintendent Bernie Gravett who led the first joint trafficking investigation in Europe and who now specialises in counter-trafficking training tells Policing Insight’s Contributing Editor Sarah Gibbons that training overseas officers is key to helping tackle serious and organised crime in the UK.

FEATURE: Crucial to defending the UK against the threat of terrorist attack has been the relationship between policing and the Security Service, a unique collaboration that has existed for more than a century and that as a counter-terrorism approach is the envy of many other countries, as Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth explains.

ANALYSIS: Fraud makes up nearly 40% of all crime in England and Wales, but fewer than 1% of cases result in a conviction. With the National Fraud Strategy more than a year old and a new government in place at Westminster, Ian Weinfass spoke to experts to find out whether it is time for action against fraudsters to be stepped up.

ANALYSIS: The changing nature of the modern terrorist threat has meant that the UK government’s response has also had to evolve; Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth looks at the background to the UK’s CONTEST strategy, it’s political and policing inputs and implications, and how the strategy has evolved to meet that changing threat.

INNOVATION: A successful pilot project using artificial intelligence to support call handlers answering domestic abuse calls in Humberside Police – which increased both officer and public safety, improved evidence and reduced staff stress – could now be applied to other crime types within the force as well as being scaled up nationally, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FREE SUBSCRIBER ACCESS: Policing Insight welcomes officers and staff from Staffordshire Police who now have FREE subscriber access with the start of a new force wide subscription. They join a community of readers from many other UK and international government, police, criminal justice and emergency services organisations with an interest in progressive policing. Read on to find out how to use your FREE subscriber access.

FEATURE: At the recent Counter-Terror Expo in London, Commander Dominic Murphy of the UK’s Counter-Terrorism Command set out the continuing challenges facing the countries counter-terror policing efforts, and the crucial role played by officers and staff in tackling a range of “diverse and unpredictable” threats, as Policing Insight’s Andrew Staniforth reports.