HC Deb 13 February 2002 vol 380 cc353-4W
14. Dr. Starkey

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assistance is being provided by the United States Government and their agencies to assist the Police Service of Northern Ireland in combating crime. [33146]

Dr. John Reid

Both the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland and I have on-going contact with a range of authorities on policing matters. My recent visit to the US gave me a particular opportunity to do this.

I was especially interested to hear of the American approach to organised criminals and the mafia culture. Through the Organised Crime Task Force, we were already adopting the New York approach of establishing multi-agency groups to tackle specific crime problems or particular criminal gangs. The idea is simple but effective—identify the problem and put together the agencies who can tackle it.

I am also delighted that joint FBI/PSNI training was restored in December by President Bush and I am convinced that this type of co-operation and training with US law enforcement agencies will contribute to our commitment of ensuring an effective and efficient police service in Northern Ireland.

Back to
Forward to