The Government has announced a £30 million crackdown on organised crime gangs operating through rogue high street businesses, including barber shops, vape stores, mini-marts and sweet shops. The Home Office says the funding will target money laundering, tax evasion and illegal working, with £20 million allocated to an enhanced law enforcement response, including a new multi-agency coordination cell based at the National Crime Agency (NCA).
Seventy-five new dedicated police officers will be recruited across the NCA, Greater Manchester Police, West Midlands Police and a joint Kent Police and Essex Police Unit to build national intelligence and increase on-the-ground enforcement. Trading standards will receive £6 million in additional funding to bolster responses in at-risk local authorities, with new officer training to identify suspicious businesses and strengthen compliance.
A new High Street Organised Crime Unit has been established to coordinate efforts between government departments, policing partners and Trading Standards. Overseen by Security Minister Dan Jarvis, the unit will identify what more is needed to prevent criminal activity, from stronger powers to better coordination. A rapid review of local responders’ powers is underway, starting with a consultation on extending the duration of closure orders to shut criminal businesses for longer.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said: “Criminal gangs have exploited our high streets to launder their dirty money and undercut honest businesses. We are hitting back with a nationwide crackdown to shut these fronts down, seize dirty cash and drive organised crime off our high streets and put bosses behind bars.”
The NCA estimates at least £12 billion of criminal cash is generated in the UK each year, with £1 billion laundered through high street businesses such as mini-marts, barber shops, vape stores and sweet shops. Some are also linked to fake goods, tax evasion, illegal working and drug supply. The crackdown builds on Operation Machinize, which has already resulted in over 950 arrests and more than £10 million in criminal value seized over the past 18 months.
Sal Melki, Deputy Director of Illicit Finance at the NCA, said: “This criminal activity makes our communities less safe and less prosperous. It undermines legitimate business, deprives public services of tax revenues, and fuels a range of predicate offences such as the drugs trade, illicit goods, trafficking, and organised immigration crime. The High Street Organised Crime Unit will be key to a whole-of-government response.”
