Hard Brexit poses risk to public say UK police chiefs

<p dir="auto"><br /> <p dir="auto">There would be a risk to the British public from a hard Brexit, police chiefs have warned. <p dir="auto">Police and Crime Commissioners have written to the UK's Home Secretary to express concern over what withdrawing from the EU will mean for security measures. <p dir="auto">They have asked Sajid Javid to confirm the Home Office has developed a contingency plan for a no-deal Brexit. <p dir="auto"><br /> <p dir="auto"><span><img src="https://images.hive.blog/768x0/https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQma56Bvir3JHuaF3HT5uR41TkjNCUJQgsf1yqjACfxs4iv/BX.PNG" srcset="https://images.hive.blog/768x0/https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQma56Bvir3JHuaF3HT5uR41TkjNCUJQgsf1yqjACfxs4iv/BX.PNG 1x, https://images.hive.blog/1536x0/https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQma56Bvir3JHuaF3HT5uR41TkjNCUJQgsf1yqjACfxs4iv/BX.PNG 2x" /> <p dir="auto"><br /> <p dir="auto">The letter from the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) said: “<em>Through discussions with the NCA (National Crime Agency) and NPCC (National Police Chiefs’ Council), we understand that considerable additional resource would be required for policing to operate using non-EU tools and that such tools would be sub-optimal – potentially putting operational efficiency and public safety at risk.“ <p dir="auto">It continues: “<em>There are 32 Law Enforcement and National Security Measures (Lens) that are used on a daily basis in an operational policing context. <p dir="auto"><br /> <p dir="auto">“<strong>Unless the Government is able to negotiate the retention of these measures following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, police and law enforcement agencies face a significant loss of operational capacity. <p dir="auto"><code>As Police and Crime Commissioners, we are increasingly concerned that such a loss of capacity could pose significant risks to our local communities. <p dir="auto">The police chiefs also state that the Brexit negotiations come at a time when the in-country threat from foreign national offenders targeting the UK from abroad is increasing, and when international co-operation is a key element of the fight against crime. <p dir="auto"><br /> <blockquote>We are concerned that a ‘no deal’ scenario could cause delays and challenges for UK policing and justice agencies <p dir="auto"><br /> <p dir="auto">They further said that, with the implementation period unlikely to be known until October this year, the five-month window until the end of March 2019 is “likely to be very challenging”. <p dir="auto"><br /> <p dir="auto">“<em>We are therefore concerned that a ‘no deal’ scenario could cause delays and challenges for UK policing and justice agencies,” the letter states. <p dir="auto"><br /> <p dir="auto">The Commissioners have asked Mr Javid to ensure the need to retain Lens tools is prioritised, that he works closely with the APCC, NPCC and NCA to get a detailed understanding of the potential risks, and consider the financial provisions and extra resources needed to support contingency planning in the event of no security treaty being achieved. <p dir="auto"><br /> <p dir="auto">The cross-party Brexit working group has requested a meeting with the Home Secretary to discuss “<strong>preparations, contingencies and the financial implications of post-Brexit policing”.