National Domestic Extremism Team

Last updated

The National Domestic Extremism Team was a police unit set up in 2005 [1] within the association of chief police officers (England and Wales) to provide a dedicated response to tackling extremism. It co-ordinated operations and investigations nationally, working closely in England and Wales with the Crown Prosecution Service which had a complementary network of prosecutors with specialist expertise in domestic extremism.

Contents

The unit was led by an officer of the rank of detective chief inspector. [2] [3] From 2009 to 2013 this was Andy Robbins. [4] [5] [6] on secondment from Kent Police.

Definition of domestic extremism

The Guardian reported in 2009 that there was no official or legal definition of domestic extremism. [7] However, they say that a "vague stab" at a working definition by senior officers is that domestic extremists are individuals or groups "that carry out criminal acts of direct action in furtherance of a campaign. These people and activities usually seek to prevent something from happening or to change legislation or domestic policy, but attempt to do so outside of the normal democratic process." The same article quotes activists criticising this definition as too loose, worded to give "police the licence to carry out widespread surveillance of whole organisations that are a legitimate part of the democratic process." [7]

The Independent described the definition as "a label for radical environmental activism – a sort of terrorism-lite." It quoted David Howarth, a former Liberal Democrats MP and law professor, who opposed what he saw as "an astonishing conflation of legitimate protest with terrorism". [8]

Takeover by the Metropolitan Police

In November 2010 it was announced that the three ACPO units commanded by the National Coordinator for Domestic Extremism would be rebranded as the National Domestic Extremism Unit and brought under the control of the Metropolitan Police by the summer of 2011. [9]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Counterterrorism</span> Activity to defend against or prevent terrorist actions

Counterterrorism, also known as anti-terrorism, incorporates the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, businesses, and intelligence agencies use to combat or eliminate terrorism. Counterterrorism strategies are a government's motivation to use their instruments and apparatus to defeat terrorists, destroy terrorist organizations, and disrupt terrorist networks.

The Association of Chief Police Officers of England, Wales and Northern Ireland (ACPO) was a not-for-profit private limited company that for many years led the development of policing practices in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Established in 1948, ACPO provided a forum for chief police officers to share ideas and coordinate their strategic operational responses, and advised government in matters such as terrorist attacks and civil emergencies. ACPO coordinated national police operations, major investigations, cross-border policing, and joint law enforcement. ACPO designated Senior Investigative Officers for major investigations and appointed officers to head ACPO units specialising in various areas of policing and crime reduction.

The National Extremism Tactical Co-ordination Unit (NETCU) was a British police organisation funded by, and reporting to, the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) that coordinated police action against groups in the United Kingdom it described as extremist.

The Specialist Operations directorate is a unit of the Metropolitan Police of London, UK responsible for providing specialist policing capabilities including national security and counter-terrorism operations. The Specialist Operations Directorate is currently led by Assistant Commissioner Matt Jukes.

The Australian Intelligence Community (AIC) and the National Intelligence Community (NIC) or National Security Community of the Australian Government are the collectives of statutory intelligence agencies, policy departments, and other government agencies concerned with protecting and advancing the national security and national interests of the Commonwealth of Australia. The intelligence and security agencies of the Australian Government have evolved since the Second World War and the Cold War and saw transformation and expansion during the Global War on Terrorism with military deployments in Afghanistan, Iraq and against ISIS in Syria. Key international and national security issues for the Australian Intelligence Community include terrorism and violent extremism, cybersecurity, transnational crime, the rise of China, and Pacific regional security.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federal Criminal Police Office (Germany)</span> German federal investigative police agency

The Federal Criminal Police Office of Germany is the federal investigative police agency of Germany, directly subordinated to the Federal Ministry of the Interior. It is headquartered in Wiesbaden, Hesse, and maintains major branch offices in Berlin and Meckenheim near Bonn. It has been headed by Holger Münch since December 2014.

In the United Kingdom police firearm policy varies by constituent countries. In Northern Ireland, all police officers carry firearms whereas in the rest of the United Kingdom, firearms are carried only by specially-trained firearms officers. The arming of police in Great Britain is a much debated topic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Automatic number-plate recognition in the United Kingdom</span>

Automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) is a technology for automatically reading vehicle number plates. The Home Office states ANPR is used by law enforcement agencies in the United Kingdom to help detect, deter and disrupt criminality including tackling organised crime groups and terrorists.

Meredydd John Hughes is a retired British police officer. He served as Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police from 1 September 2004 to 2011.

Covert policing in the United Kingdom are the practices of the British police that are hidden to the public, usually employed in order that an officer can gather intelligence and approach an offender without prompting escape.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Animal Liberation Front</span> Animal rights direct action organization

The Animal Liberation Front (ALF) is an international, leaderless, decentralized political and social resistance movement that advocates and engages in what it calls non-violent direct action in protest against incidents of animal cruelty. It originated in the 1970s from the Bands of Mercy. Participants state it is a modern-day Underground Railroad, removing animals from laboratories and farms, destroying facilities, arranging safe houses, veterinary care and operating sanctuaries where the animals subsequently live. Critics have labelled them as eco-terrorists.

The National Security Investigations Team (NSIT), known as the Special Investigation Group (SIG) prior to 2016, is a New Zealand government group that focuses on threats to national security, formed in response to the September 11 attacks. It is part of the New Zealand Police, with four NSIT teams in regional centres around the country.

The National Public Order Intelligence Unit (NPOIU) was run by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), a private company connected to United Kingdom police intelligence, and was set up in 1999 to track green activists and public demonstrations. It has been found that much of the Unit's work was against "activists working on social justice, anti-racist, and environmental campaigns" and legitimate dissent, rather than extremist groups, with more than 1,000 political groups having been subjected to surveillance by covert officers. The work of the group has been accused as having hobbled Climate-related protest in the late 2000s in the United Kingdom and more widely.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Crime Agency</span> National law enforcement agency in the United Kingdom

The National Crime Agency (NCA) is a national law enforcement agency in the United Kingdom. It is the UK's lead agency against organised crime; human, weapon and drug trafficking; cybercrime; and economic crime that goes across regional and international borders; but it can be tasked to investigate any crime. The NCA has a strategic role as part of which it looks at serious crime in aggregate across the UK, especially analysing how organised criminals are operating and how they can be disrupted. To do this, it works closely with regional organised crime units (ROCUs), local police forces, and other government departments and agencies.

The National Domestic Extremism and Disorder Intelligence Unit is a national police unit of the National Police Chiefs' Council within the Metropolitan Police Service Specialist Operations Group.

The Special Demonstration Squad (SDS) was an undercover unit of Greater London's Metropolitan Police Service, set up in 1968 with the approval of the Wilson government, to infiltrate British protest groups. It was part of the Special Branch, and worked closely with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS). It operated from 1968 to 2008.

The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) is a national coordination body for law enforcement in the United Kingdom and the representative body for British police chief officers. Established on 1 April 2015, it replaced the former Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), following the Parker Review of the operations of ACPO.

The National Committee for Intelligence Coordination is the principal forum used by the Prime Minister of Bangladesh for matters of national security and coordination between intelligence agencies. Since its inception under Sheikh Hasina, the function of the council has been to advise and assist the prime minister on national security and foreign policies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Counter Terrorism Policing</span> UK national counter terrorism policing network

Counter Terrorism Policing is the national collaboration of police forces working to prevent, deter, and investigate terrorism in the United Kingdom.

The Department of Home Affairs is the Australian Government interior ministry with responsibilities for national security, law enforcement, emergency management, border control, immigration, refugees, citizenship, transport security and multicultural affairs. The portfolio also includes federal agencies such as the Australian Border Force and the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation. The Home Affairs portfolio reports to the Minister for Home Affairs, currently held by Clare O'Neil, and is led by the Secretary of the Department of Home Affairs, Mike Pezzullo. In 2022, the Australian Federal Police, Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission and Australian Transaction and Analysis Center were de-merged from the department and moved to the Attorney General portfolio.

References

  1. A review of national police units which provide intelligence on criminality associated with protest (page 30), HMIC, 2 February 2012, accessed 25 April 2016]
  2. Head of National Domestic Extremism Team, ACPO website, cache accessed 11 November 2009
  3. National Operations Co-ordinator Head of National Domestic Extremism Team (NDET), Experteer, accessed 11 November 2009
  4. ACPO – APA Summer Conference Programme 2009, ACPO-APA website, July 2009, accessed 11 November 2009
  5. Activist targeted bank in animal rights crime wave Archived 8 January 2011 at the Wayback Machine , Portsmouth Today, 6 January 2011, accessed 6 January 2011
  6. Andrew Robbins | LinkedIn, accessed 26 December 2015
  7. 1 2 Evans, Rob; Lewis, Paul; Taylor, Matthew (25 October 2009). "How police rebranded lawful protest as 'domestic extremism'". The Guardian. London.
  8. "Eco anarchists: A new breed of terrorist?" . The Independent. London. 18 May 2010. Archived from the original on 18 June 2022.
  9. "Police on 'tightrope' at protests". Press Association. 23 November 2010. Archived from the original on 24 December 2012. Retrieved 25 January 2011.