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Blunkett announces 'British FBI'

Plans for an elite new agency to tackle organised crime have been unveiled by the government.
It will merge the National Crime Squad, the National Criminal Intelligence Service and investigative branches of Customs and the Immigration Service.

The UK-wide Serious Organised Crime Agency will combat crimes like people smuggling and drug trafficking.

Although already dubbed Britain's FBI, the crime-fighting force will not deal with terrorism or murder cases.

'Long overdue'

Announcing the creation of the agency, Home Secretary David Blunkett said more new measures to combat organised crime would be unveiled shortly.

"Organised criminals make their millions from human misery - trafficking in drugs and people, engaging in fraud and extortion.

"They control criminal empires that reach from the other side of the world to the dealer on the street corner," he said.

He continued: "We must become better organised, more sophisticated and more technologically capable than the criminals."

The agency, which marks the biggest shake-up of policing structure since 1964 when the 43 force areas were drawn up, is not expected to operate until 2006.

The centrally-funded agency will employ as many as 5,000 agents to fight the big business end of organised crime, which individual forces find difficult to tackle on their own.

The Metropolitan Police welcomed the new agency.

Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur said: ""London's communities are blighted by organised criminal networks, which have a national and international dimension.

"We will work with the agency to ensure there is a faster and more flexible approach to dealing with this menace".

Roy Ramm, former head of the Organised Crime Unit, also welcomed the move.

He told the BBC: "There are issues of overlap and sometimes turf wars.

"Bringing these agencies together will make an enormous difference and is long overdue."

Civilian staff

The Association of Chief Police Officers wants the government to ensure the agency avoids US-style arguments between "feds" and local police.

The agency will have the power to make its own arrests, but will also provide intelligence to a local force and leave the prosecution to them.

There has been increasing concern a single national body would find it easier to deal with gangs who might operate in Europe as well as the UK.

The authorities are also having to change the way they operate to tackle people smuggling, with gangs often involved in crimes such as trafficking sex slaves or child pornography.

The new agency is likely to have civilian investigators such as accountants, financial experts and computer experts.

A team will now be set up to appoint a chairman and director-general for the agency.