From today, all taxi licensing authorities can request enhanced criminal record checks before issuing licences to taxi and private hire vehicle drivers. This means licensing authorities can find out if someone is barred by the Independent Safeguarding Authority from working with children or vulnerable people before issuing a licence. The changes will help simplify the system of criminal record checks, and provide reassurance to women and other vulnerable customers who use taxis and mini-cabs. Criminal Information Minister Lynne Featherstone said: 'Taxi drivers provide a vital service so it...

An organised crime group involved in smuggling illegal immigrants into Europe has been dismantled by Hungarian Police, working in cooperation with Europol. Three key suspects, two Romanians and one Hungarian, were arrested on Tuesday in an action coordinated by the Hungarian National Bureau of Investigation. The criminal network has been involved in smuggling more than 150 illegal immigrants, of Pakistani, Afghani, Turkish and Palestinian origin, into Austria and Germany via Hungary. They used one of the well-known Balkan illegal immigration routes, stretching from Greece through ...

In the midst of Business Continuity Awareness Week 2012 (19th March – 23rd March), the British Security Industry Association (BSIA) – the trade body representing the private security industry in the UK - reminds business owners how security measures can help manage business continuity when faced with potential disruptions to services. From student protests to heavy snowfalls, IT breaches and the August riots last year businesses in the UK have had to quickly come to terms with the importance of having business continuity plans in place. The interruption of activity caused by such inci...

In a move that may well have taken the Support Services Sector of the market with some surprise, Capita Plc have acquired the issued share capital of The Security Watchdog for an undisclosed sum. Over the last 12 months in particular, The Screening Bureau Division has grown dramatically, such that it is now at the very forefront of the rapidly developing Background Screening Industry; perhaps more than that, it has also established an outstanding reputation for the quality of its service. The Watchdog’s recruitment arm, Momentum, is included in the acquisition, but the Audit Division, whic...

On 19th March 2012 a gunman on a motorbike opened fire outside a Jewish School in Toulouse, 4 people were killed. The Metropolitan Police have today issued advice in respect of counter measures that should be taken in the UK as a result of this tradgedy. There are similarities between this & 2 other earlier shootings in the region: on 11th March a French Soldier was shot dead in Toulouse by a man on a scooter; on 15th March in the town of Montauban 3 uniformed soldiers were shot, 2 fatally by a male on a motor scooter. The same calibre of ammunition was found at the scene of all 3 atta...

The British Security Industry Association (BSIA) has launched a new free guide for the logistics sector, aimed at helping businesses understand the importance of keeping sites protected, and the benefits associated with employing quality access control systems, provided and installed by reliable and professional security companies. According to the Freight Transport Association’s Logistic Report 2011, ‘truck crime cost the logistics industry around £250 million per year, through lost loads, damage to vehicles and through injury to drivers’. Whilst a lot of these incidents may happen as...

An unlicensed Huddersfield security director was found working illegally yesterday [15th March] when SIA investigators carried out a series of visits to CCTV suites in the North of England. SIA investigators visited a security company’s office in Huddersfield and after being refused entry to the premises, investigators invoked their powers of entry under the Private Security Industry Act 2001. Once inside the premises, investigators found that the director of the security company did not hold an SIA licence. He was interviewed under caution for the offence and further enforcement work will ...

The Home Secretary today received the final part of Tom Winsor’s review into police pay and conditions. The former rail regulator was commissioned in October 2010 to conduct an independent study into how police in England and Wales are rewarded – the biggest examination of its type for more than three decades. And his work concluded today with the publication of the second part of his review – into long-term transformation and modernisation of pay and conditions. Policing Minister Nick Herbert said: 'We would like to thank Tom Winsor for his work in producing this wide-ra...

Immigration Minister Damian Green this morning announced that every passenger on non-European Economic Area (EEA) flights travelling to the UK will have their details checked using the e-Borders system. He made the comment during a speech this morning where he outlined how the new Border Force will operate following its separation from the UK Border Agency. Speaking at the Royal United Services Institute, the minister said there will be clear rules into the correct level of checks for every type of passenger and all types of goods that cross the UK border. In addition, the e-Borders system ...

Minister for Crime and Security James Brokenshire watched as the Metropolitan Police Olympic Torch protection team were put through their paces today at a training exercise in Hendon. The Olympic Torch arrives in the UK on 18 May and will embark on a 70 day tour of the country before arriving at the Olympic Stadium on 27 July for the opening ceremony. The Torch will be accompanied on its journey by a 69 strong policing team. The team was selected in December 2010 following an eight month selection process and are drawn from a range of policing roles including borough policing, CID, diploma...