LONDON, June 10 -- The government of the United Kingdom issued the following news:
Dodgy shops will be forced to close their doors as police work to put criminal bosses behind bars under new legislation to be introduced later this year.
Policeand local authoritieswillbe equipped withstrongerpowers to close rogue businesses forlongeras they pursue prosecutions to put criminal bosses in jail.
While existing powers allow premises to be closed for up to 6 months, businesses can often reopen before investigations have concluded, allowing criminal activity to resume and creatingadditionalburdens for local authorities, police forces and the courts.
Under plans,the government will double themaximum durationof closure ordersin orderto giveinvestigators more time to gather evidence, pursue prosecutions and identifythe criminal bosses directing activity from behind the scenes,while also preventing rogue operators from simply reopening and resuming illegal activity. The government will introduce secondary legislation this year.
The Home Secretary has also instructed officials to urgently review the presence of vapeshops,barbers,and car washeson the skilled worker sponsorship list,following concerns about potential misuse of the system. Any businesses seeking to abuse the system will have their licences revoked.
This follows the launch of a new national crackdown on organised crimeoperatingacross high streets at barber shops, vape stores, mini-marts, and sweet shops.
£30millionof new funding will boost police and trading standards'response to organised crime, with thousands of businesses expected to be raided, hundreds of arrests made and millions in cash seized.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said:
High streets across the country have been hijacked by criminal gangsoperatingin plain sight - running vape stores, dodgybarbers,and nail salons to launder their dirty money.
I have launched a nationwide crackdown to raid and close thousands of illegal businesses, arrest bosses and seize their dirty cash.
But I will go further - introducing new laws to close these shops for good and put criminal bosses behind bars."
The new measures build on changes made through the Crime and Policing Act, which increased the duration of closure notices from 48 hours to 72 hours,helping councils to gather enough evidenceto shut down shops for longer.
As part of a rapid review into local responders' powers, the government will explorea newand longertemporary closure power to specifically tackle shops involved in criminality, meaning that local authoritiesdon'tneed to rely on evidence of anti-social behaviour alone to shut down these shops.
Criminalsoperatingthese businesses often go to significant lengths to conceal their identities and financial activity, making investigations complex and time-consuming as law enforcement agencies follow money trails and build cases against those responsible.
These measureswill give the policeand local authoritiesstronger tools to disrupt organised crime, prevent repeatoffending,and protect honest businesses. It will also reduce the burden on the police and the courts by ending the need for repeated applications to extend closures.
John Herriman, Chief Executive at the Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI), said:
CTSI welcomes the government's intent to strengthen enforcement powers across England and Wales, particularly regarding closure orders, which is an issue we have been actively campaigning on recently. Closure orders are a key enforcement tool for Trading Standards Officers in tackling 'dodgy shops' but our members have made us aware of challenges that limit their current impact.
Strengthening enforcement powers, including extending the duration of closure orders, is an important first step in addressing those issues. Stronger enforcement powers will allow officers more time to investigate criminality, prevent criminals from using a premises to break the law and, crucially, safeguard local communities from the serious risk these groups pose.
CTSI is encouraged by the government's intent to strengthen enforcement powers, and we look forward to engaging with the consultation process to ensure the powers are as robust as possible to help crack down on criminals and safeguard local communities.
Josh Nicholson, Head of Housing and Communities, Centre for Social Justice, said:
For too long, organised criminal gangs have hijacked shopfronts on our high streets and got away with it. These gangs sell illegal tobacco, traffic drugs, and facilitate immigration crime from the heart of our communities, undermining the foundations of safe community life.
Enforcement agencies tell us that they need stronger and faster powers to shut down these criminal shops for good. We welcome the Home Secretary's commitment to strengthening closure orders which will give law enforcement the tools they need to crack down on the organised criminals who operate across Britain's high streets.
The new measures will be taken forward following a consultationwith interested parties,withregulationsto extend closure orders expected to be laid by the end of 2026.
Thenew High Street Organised Crime Unit will work across government todrive furtherinterventions tostrengthen the local and national response to organised crime onthe high street.It comes as the NCA estimate at least £12billionof criminal cash is generated in the UK each year, with £1 billion laundered through high street businesses like mini-marts, barber shops, vape stores and sweet shops.
Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.
