Agenda item

The Commissioner of Police to be heard.

The Commissioner was heard regarding Brexit and the following points were made.

·         The Commissioner noted that in the event of a No Deal Brexit, the Force would lose access to two key tools namely intelligence and arrest warrants, as the flow of intelligence between the UK and the Eu was interrupted, and the UK had to relying on varying extradition treaties rather than the European Arrest Warrant (EAW). It should be noted that any EU citizens in the UK would not be subject to the EAW. As the terms of any Brexit deal were not yet known it was not possible to provide Members with an estimate of the likely impact.

·         In response to a question, the xxxx confirmed that the City of London Police could work via Interpol but the fact remained that the current working relationship with Europol was an effective one with a proven track record of delivery. The Commissioner added that the nature of the two institutions was different – Interpol was more a forum for liaison compared to Europol.

·         In response to queries from a Member regarding the impact of Brexit on the requirement for foreign language qualifications, and in response what education and training the Force was providing in response, the xxxx noted that the Force was being guided by coordinated activity from the Home Office and National Crime Agency. Further education and training was on offer through the Economic Crime Academy.

·         In response to a question, the Commissioner noted that Force Counter Terror officers proactively engaged with City businesses but faced a barrier in the form for high turnover of short-term office space. A Member suggested that the Force’s approach to providers such as WeWork should be reviewed in light of this.

RESOLVED, that the update be noted.