A specialist new unit has been launched to lead the UK’s work on international crime.

The Joint International Crime Centre consolidates and enhances the UK’s capabilities around international law enforcement co-operation and co-ordination.

It provides the UK an opportunity to perform a greater and more efficient role in responding to the growing threat from transnational criminality.

The JICC will drive, co-ordinate, and support the response of UK policing and law enforcement to international crime.

It is formed by initially combining the current capabilities housed in the NCA’s International Crime Bureau (UKICB) and policing’s International Crime Coordination Centre (ICCC).

The two previous centres worked with the NCA, National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC), with Home Office support, to create the JICC, which is hosted by the NCA.

NCA Director General of Operations Steve Rodhouse said: “While the JICC retains the best of both previous centres it is a new streamlined unit bringing together shared processes, teams, systems and data under one roof.

“It will improve how policing and the NCA tackles international criminality that impacts the UK.

“I am confident that it will make us more effective in protecting the public.”

The JICC provides a multi-agency approach to meeting the increasing international demands of territorial policing.

It is integrated with the NCA’s specialist international capabilities, such as its International Liaison Officer (ILO) network - in which scores of internationally-based officers cover cases in more than 120 countries.

Around 300 officers work at the JICC – with a third seconded from police forces.

Governance is jointly overseen by the NCA and NPCC .

NPCC International lead Deputy Chief Constable Pete Ayling, said: “Like all countries, the UK faces a growing threat from organised criminal groups that operate across borders with increasing levels of sophistication.

“The JICC brings together experts from across policing and the National Crime Agency to tackle international criminals and bear down on serious organised crime and dangerous offenders.

“The JICC will identify criminal threats emanating from abroad and build capability to tackle and prevent them. The UK is a safe place to live, work and prosper and this new specialist unit will ensure we remain at the cutting edge of international law enforcement, creating a hostile place for those who would cause harm on our shores.”

Security Minister Tom Tugendhat said: “Organised crime groups don’t recognise borders.

“If we want to crack down on the most dangerous organisations and offenders then we need to tackle them upstream, online and at source.

“The new Joint International Crime Centre will do just that, taking a multi-agency approach to identify criminal threats coming from abroad and blunt their reach into the UK.”

A non-exhaustive list of services includes: offender management; extradition and watchlisting; policy and guidance; partner support: data management and analysis; information provision and exchange: Interpol & Europol; Prum (DNA and fingerprints) and biometrics data exchange; disclosure; outbound & inbound intelligence development and analysis.

It will also provide operational support; for example with surveillance requests; judicial co-operation; search and locate (missing) work; Overseas Security and Justice (OSJA); casework; training; ILO network support; and work involving I-LEAP (International Law Enforcement Alerts Platform).

03 April 2023