1. Serious Organised Crime Agency
DG responsible for everything that SOCA does operationally. Appointed by the Home Secretary.
My job to make the vision real.

2. Organised Crime Affects everyone Big business Fluid and resilient
Direct and indirect effects: HO estimates put cost to UK of harm caused by SOC as over £20bn a year. Includes cost of crimes committed by drug addicts to feed their habits, costs to NHS of caring for addicts, costs of dealing with people trafficked illegally into the country. Also costs which can’t be quantified
SOCs are entrepreneurs: they’ll follow the profits, which are potentially very large - turnover of illegal drugs market estimated at £7bn a year and organised illegal immigration put at £1bn a year. So these people are hard targets – aren’t going to give up easily.
SOC is complex. Looking at it by sectors over-simplifies things – in practice SOCs move between commodities, balancing risk and profit. Much more fluid than traditional image of mafia – groups come together or compete with eachother at different times, depending on the opportunity.

3. Introducing SOCA Intelligence and executive functions 4,300 staff
Operates across UK and overseas
Intelligence-led agency with law enforcement powers and harm reduction responsibilities. Serious enforcement muscle: over 1,000 ex-police officers transferring from NCS and around 800 specialist investigators from HMRC.
Also serious technical capabilities (which can’t go into in public) but which will put SOCA right at the cutting edge of criminal investigations.
Major network of overseas liaison officers – operating in 40 countries worldwide.

4. Criminal Justice Excellence
Arrest and prosecution
Early involvement of prosecutors
Use of new powers
SOCA officers will have the full range of law enforcement powers: will use these to full effect to investigate, prosecute and otherwise disrupt organised crime enterprises. Aim is to maintain existing capacity to launch prosecutions.
By involving prosecutors right from the start of planning operations, we think we can increase prospects of a successful prosecution
Will use new powers in SOCAP Act – eg power to seek Financial Reporting Orders against those convicted of SOC activities – will require them to share details of their finances with us for many years after their sentence is complete. Also new powers to seek disclosure in financial investigation cases and powers of Queens Evidence: we will use these at the first appropriate opportunity. .

5. Knowledge Knowing where, when and how to strike New investment
Strong information flows with public and private sectors
Primary function is to build knowledge and understanding of SOC - existing knowledge of SOC isn’t good enough – SOCA will put more effort. Not about knowledge of its own sake – better knowledge of SOC will bring better understanding of its vulnerabilities and what works best to disrupt and dismantle it.
SOCA Board has agreed that there will be capital investment to improve knowledge management and to expand collection capacity (can’t give any more details).
Gateways in SOCAP are very wide, so that we can join up the knowledge held in different parts of the public and private sectors to maximum effect.

6. Newness New techniques to disrupt and undermine Mobilising others
Stronger attacks on proceeds of crime
SOCA will be legally audacious. We’ll use all the powers available – criminal and civil – to maximum effect. Can’t say much about new techniques we might use – essential that keep an element of surprise, keep the opposition on their toes. But 2 keys –
Never give up and never let go – we know our targets won’t be easy to crack, but once we get a hold on someone, we’ll keep at them until they give up or retire.
Hit the criminals where it hurts – in the pocket. Financial investigators and asset recovery will be part of every investigation SOCA does.
Mobilising others –sometimes we’ll get others to act on our behalf, if we think that might be more effective. Purpose is to launch a concerted attack – not just about SOCA achieving its aims.

7. Partnership Traditional partners New partners
Joint planning of activity
There’s no SOCA monopoly. SOCA’s business model depends on the information that it will get from others, and has support to others as a central function.
Traditional partners – police, HMRC, government departments
New partners – city institutions, business, retailers, trade and regulatory bodies.
SOCA will have a low public profile and won’t be interested in hunting public glory. So we may let our partners take sole credit for joint work. What matters is that we achieve the mobilisation of the UK as a whole against serious organised crime and the damage it causes, not that we get our faces on the front page.

8. Impact Criminals finding UK a less attractive market
More proceeds of crime recovered
Reduced harm to communities
SOCA’s targets are sophisticated and determined – success won’t come quickly or easily. It will take time to build the understanding of serious organised crime that we need to be truly effective against it.
But we will be seeking to make an impact right from the start. We will hit the ground running, with a list of targets we want to pursue right from the start. Right from the start, we will put a new emphasis on seizing the proceeds of crime, making maximum use of the powers available.
None of this is easy, but we think it is the right thing to be doing.

9. International partnerships
Highly valued by SOCA
Common strategies and shared responsibility
Close bilateral relationships in key locations in the world
Cooperation with liaison officers in London
Development of international agencies

10. SOCA Liaison Officers
A single international network for the first time
Development of previous arrangements with key new features
Network of 115 SOCA Liaison Officers in 39 countries
Large investments in Spain, Turkey, the Netherlands, Colombia, Jamaica, and Afghanistan

11. Multilateral work
National centre for Interpol, Europol and others – 130 staff
Strong supporters of Europol
SIS and other EU capabilities
Interpol
NGOs

12. Strategic priorities Improve our knowledge and understanding
Raising the risk for Organised Crime
Support UK and non-UK partners
Partnership work across all sectors of our business
Attacking the profit motive

13. Key new features Exploiting new intervention tools
criminal finances through revised SAR regime
crime techniques
private sector and regulators
military capabilities and intelligence agencies

14. Key new features Bulk data management Global response capability
Future scanning
Embedded officers and joint stations

15. Key messages Collaboration is highly important to SOCA
Maximise our use of new powers
Commitment to work in some new ways
We do not have a “too difficult” file

16. Serious Organised Crime Agency
Bill Hughes
Director General