Correspondence

Crime and policing news update: June 2014

Published 26 June 2014

1. Modern Slavery Bill

The Modern Slavery Bill introduced to Parliament on 10 June, is the first of its kind in Europe, and is a historic opportunity to get new legislation on the statute books.

The bill will ensure that slave drivers receive tougher sentences by increasing the maximum available sentence to life imprisonment. It will enable courts to pass trafficking prevention orders to restrict the activity of offenders when they are released. It will also create an important new role – an Anti-Slavery Commissioner – who will oversee the action being taken by law enforcement and other agencies.

2. Serious Crime Bill

The Serious Crime Bill was introduced in the House of Lords on 5 June, and was given a Second Reading in the Lords on 16 June.

The bill implements proposals in the serious and organised crime strategy to provide the National Crime Agency, police forces and other law enforcement agencies with the powers they need to pursue, disrupt and bring to justice those engaged in serious and organised crime. In particular, the bill includes measures to improve our ability to recover criminal assets by:

• amending the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002
• amending the Computer Misuse Act 1990 to ensure sentences for attacks on computer systems fully reflect the damage they cause
• creating a new offence targeting people who knowingly participate in an organised crime group; and establishes new powers to seize, detain and destroy substances suspected of being used as cutting agents for illegal drugs

The bill also includes measures to protect vulnerable women and children and guard against the threat of terrorism.

3. Local action against serious and organised crime

On 14 July, Mike Barton (Chief Constable, Durham Constabulary) will be co-hosting the latest in a series of regional workshops to promote the serious and organised crime strategy and, in particular, local multi-agency working.

So far over 700 partners have participated in the workshops including representatives from over 150 local authorities, 24 police and crime commissioners and 46 prisons. The workshops are intended to further understanding of the impact of serious and organised crime on local communities and how the information and powers of a wide range of agencies can be brought to bear against it. They have also provided an opportunity to identify and share best practice examples and ideas.

If you would like further details about this work, please contact Faye Johnson or Keri at ocstrategy@homeoffice.x.gov.uk.

4. Ending gang and youth violence conference

The Home Secretary outlined the government’s continued support for local areas in driving down violence, at the Ending gang and youth volence national conference, held on 11 June.

In speeches given at the event, both the Minister for Crime Prevention and the Home Secretary stressed the importance of local partners working together on these issues effectively. The conference brought together a wide range of professionals from the police, local authorities and the voluntary and community sector to discuss what more can be done to combat gang and youth violence. Issues raised included the role of gangs in the sexual exploitation of girls and young women and the involvement of street gangs in the supply of drugs across the country.

Speakers included Carlene Firmin MBE, Head of the MsUnderstood Partnership at the University of Bedfordshire, on how to protect women and girls affected by gangs, and Carey Oppenheim, the Chief Executive of the Early Intervention Foundation, on the importance of intervening early to break intergenerational cycles of violence, and the support the Foundation will offer to local areas in the third year of the programme.

The Minister for Crime Prevention, Norman Baker, also announced that practical support from the Home Office frontline team will be extended to a further ten areas this year.

To find out more about the work of the Ending Gang and Youth Violence programme, please email seriousyouthviolence@homeoffice.gov.uk.

5. Professional development for senior public service commissioners

The Cabinet Office and its partners developed the Commissioning Academy as a development programme for senior leaders from all parts of the public sector. It is designed to equip a cadre of professionals to deal with the challenges facing public services, take up new opportunities and commission the right outcomes for their communities. Applications for the next cohort of training starting in September and October, close on the 8 July.

Further information on the programme can be obtained from the Commissioning Academy pages and Guide for Participants. An updated version of the application form is also available.

For any enquiries about the Commissioning Academy programme, please email info@ccs.gov.uk. Alternatively, interested parties can call 0345 410 2222 to talk to a member of the team.

6. Better police procurement

The National Audit Office, the Public Accounts Committee, and the Home Affairs Select Committee have all strongly recommended that the Home Office work more closely with the police to achieve value for money and transparency of procurement spend.

A recent independent review of the National Police Procurement Hub (NPPH) sponsored by the Home Office also recommended bringing together separate strands of work on police procurement into a comprehensive programme of value for money initiatives to drive procurement savings and efficiencies. A programme has been established to:

• improve the evidence for collaborative procurement
• improve management information for PCCs and police on procurement spend
• support the implementation of the NPPH - an electronic marketplace, similar in style to Amazon, which will enable police forces to purchase a wide range of goods and services
• extend procurement collaboration to the wider law enforcement community where there are common requirements and potential benefits of scale. UK Border Force and Immigration Enforcement will be included and the National Crime Agency, Police Scotland and Police Service of Northern Ireland have also been invited to participate

The programme is supported by a wide range of partners in policing who are involved in taking it forward, if you would like to be involved or obtain further information, please contact Michael Grimwood on 020 7035 3085 or by email at MichaelP.Grimwood@homeoffice.gov.uk.

7. IDIOM

IDIOM is a national IT system provided by the Home Office, free of charge, to all police forces. It is used to support the management of the most prolific and chaotic offenders under local Integrated Offender Management arrangements.

The system allows local areas to monitor different cohorts of offenders – both those they want to manage because of the risk they pose to local crime rates, and those who local partners want to prioritise for interventions.

IDIOM receives an automated, daily download of Police National Computer data on the arrests, charges, disposals, remand details, court outcomes and prison releases for all the offenders monitored using the system. The latest system development, which has recently gone live, makes it easier for partners to produce local performance reports, which they can use to help monitor the impact of their local Integrated Offender Management arrangements.

Although primarily used by the police, IDIOM can be made available to other local partners if they have access to the government secure intranet gateway. Email IOM.Info@homeoffice.gov.uk for further information.

8. Digital Pathfinders marching on

The work of the College of Policing and the Home Office on the Digital Pathfinders initiative has been progressing well since the last update in April.

This month the College of Policing have launched the POLKA community for police digitisation.

This community is a place where forces can share best practice and ideas in discussion threads with other practitioners. It will provide a source of information on digitisation, we will keep the most up to date guidance there and provide information on the latest events and speeches from the minister. The Police Science and Technology Unit will be regularly blogging to keep everyone up to date on policy development. We are looking forward to sharing views and ideas on innovative use of IT through this forum and particularly want to hear from practitioners.

This online forum is a great opportunity to communicate and share all the work that’s happening to deliver digital policing by 2016.

9. Consultation launched on riot damages

For over 120 years compensation has been paid to those who have suffered property damage or losses in riots through the provisions set out in the Riot (Damages) Act 1886. Following the rioting that took place in the summer of 2011 it became clear that the Act was out of date and lacked clarity in several areas.

This year’s Queen’s Speech contained a commitment from government to bring forward new draft legislation on Riot Damages, which would replace the outdated provisions with updated and modernised legislation. The Home Office has worked with industry experts and stakeholders to develop an understanding of the issues and agree some basic principles for a new Act.

Damian Green launched a public consultation on 5 June setting out the proposals for reform. This closes on 1 August after which the aim is to submit a draft bill for pre-legislative scrutiny in late October.

10. Mental Health Crisis Care Concordat

The Mental Health Crisis Care Concordat is an agreement between 22 national signatories including the police, social services, NHS England, Mind, and local and national government, which aims to ensure that anyone experiencing a mental health crisis will be kept safe and helped to find the support they need, whatever the circumstances in which they first need help.

Mind has been chosen to help to promote the Concordat at a local level and help local services set up their own local crisis care declarations. There are a number of events from July which are free to attend to aid areas who are interested.

11. Control of khat

Khat became a controlled Class C drug on 24 June.

The government decided to ban khat under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 to address the following issues:

• the community concerns on the health and social harms of khat use in the UK
• the risk of the UK becoming a single, regional khat smuggling hub for onward trafficking to countries where it is banned – especially after the Dutch ban came into force in January 2013

All Class C drug offences apply including possession with intent to supply, supply, importation, exportation and production, which attract criminal sanctions of up to 14 years’ imprisonment and unlimited fine on indictment (summary conviction: 3 months and £2,500), and UK law enforcement now have the power to seize khat.

Khat use is mainly associated with Somali and Yemeni communities in the UK. We needed to ensure that the policing response to possession offences (for personal use) would be proportionate and sensitive, so the Home Secretary agreed with the Secretary of State for Justice and the national policing lead on drugs to introduce ‘khat warnings’ to deal with the first such offence and £60 Penalty Notices for Disorder the second time. Further possession offences will likely lead to arrest for possession of a controlled Class C drug and further action (this approach is similar to cannabis – separate national policing guidance on khat has been issued).

Khat fact sheets on the benefits of the khat ban, penalties and access to support were also made available in Amharic, Arabic, English, Somali and Swahili for partners to use and communicate to the relevant communities. Further information can also be seen on amendments to the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, or email Cyrille.Marcel2@homeoffice.gov.uk.

12. Crimestoppers commercial cannabis campaign

The Home Office is working with Crimestoppers and 17 participating forces to improve public reporting of commercial cannabis cultivation with links to serious organised crime in key problem areas.

Scratch and sniff cards will be posted through letterboxes of houses in areas where the police have intelligence of cannabis cultivation or where police know that cannabis cultivation is driving crime levels. The cards help people correctly identify the smell (which is different from the smell of cannabis when smoked) and signs of cultivation and improve the quality of public intelligence to the police.

A booklet has also been produced to support landlords and letting agents protect their property from being used for cannabis cultivation by organised criminals. The scratch and sniff cards are supported by a proactive press launch on 26 June.

During the campaign period last year 28% more information was received, which was subsequently used by forces for raids across the country. Further information on the campaign can be seen by visiting Crimestoppers.

13. Campaign to combat female genital mutilation

The Home Office was successful securing approx £250,000 from the European Union PROGRESS fund to combat female genital mutilation (FGM) in the UK. FGM is an unacceptable form of abuse and violence against girls and women, and the government is absolutely committed to preventing and combatting FGM. Part of this fund is being used to run a marketing campaign to raise awareness of FGM within the UK.

The Home Office launched the campaign on 2 June and activity will run until the end of August 2014. The aim of the campaign is to raise awareness of FGM and signpost the NSPCC FGM helpline (0800 028 3550) and NSPCC FGM website as a place to seek advice, support and information on FGM from trained professionals.

The campaign will also encourage people to report suspected cases of FGM. The campaign is aimed at mothers and carers of girls at risk of FGM, professionals (eg. doctors, teachers and midwives) and the wider communities, including first generation elders.

Partners can request a copy of an FGM campaign brief by emailing FGMEnquires@homeoffice.gov.uk. The brief provides further background information to the campaign, along with details on how to order support materials. You also can view the support materials on GOV.UK.

You can also help support the campaign by tweeting our new campaign with @NSPCC, which calls on mothers and carers to #endFGM. Read the Home Office FGM campaign news story.

The Prime Minster and UNICEF will host the Girl Summit 2014 in July. The summit is aimed at mobilising domestic and international efforts to end female genital mutilation (FGM) and child, early and forced marriage (CEFM) within a generation. Read more about the summit.

You can show your support by signing the Girl Summit pledge today, and please encourage your supporters and audiences to do the same.

14. Scottish independence referendum – ‘In the Know’ fact sheets

The UK government has published a set of In the Know fact sheets which summarise the key findings of the 15 Scotland analysis papers produced over the last 18 months.

The 15th and final analysis paper published on 19 June concludes the series, which includes 2 papers specifically on Home Office-related topics: Borders and Citizenship, and Security.

The fact sheets are complemented by a booklet launched this month by Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael explaining what staying in the United Kingdom means for Scotland. The 16-page booklet provides everyone in Scotland with information so they have the opportunity to make an informed decision in September.