police world Edition 3 2013

Alex Jones, a member from 4 Region Wales, tells of his experiences as he represented Section UK at the 2nd World Seminar for Young Police Officers. The week long event encompassed professional development and education - complemented with a social programme. World Seminar for Young Police Officers Goes Down Under

W hen I received the news that I had been selected to represent Section UK at the Second World Seminar for Young Police Officers I was excited, to say the least. The 8 months waiting that followed flew by. The next thing I knew I was preparing to embark on my adventure down under. I waved goodbye to Llanelli and after around 23 hours of flight time I arrived a little bleary eyed in Brisbane. Not wanting to let jet lag take hold, I made use of my first few hours getting to know some of the other participants, prior to the welcome BBQ in the evening - which took us to the rooftop of the Police Credit Union Building. This gathering gave everyone the opportunity to get to know each other in a relaxed informal setting.

Having been briefed and given our welcome packs, I could see that this was going to be an action packed week. The following morning was a formal uniforms day, which included the official opening and photographs. Seeing a sea of police uniform from a variety of police forces from all over the world was certainly a sight to behold. We had a welcome address at the Queensland Parliament House from the President of Section Australia, Michelle Harris. The magnitude of the event then hit home - 63 Participants from 30 countries and I was one of them! “Pinch me”, I thought to myself. The rest of the day comprised of lectures and discussions from guest speakers. The first was from Andy McGregor of the New Zealand police.

He had come to discuss the New Zealand earthquakes and the Incident Command which took place. It was a highly informative presentation with a first hand account of the incident and what followed. He described the resilience shown by the officers and the people of New Zealand. A representative of the Disaster Victim Identification team, who was dispatched from Australia to support New Zealand, also gave an informative presentation on the dealing of the aftermath of such a disaster. The day continued with more presentations on Drug Importation & Distribution, Illicit Laboratory Investigations and Roads Policing - notably the use of Roadside Analysis for Drugs.This was an interesting topic, which prompted discussion given that the UK has recently had Home Office approval on devices for custody units. Mobile Data plays an important part in my day to day police work. So it was great to gain insight in to what the Queensland Police strategy on ‘Smart Phones and Policing’ was in this area. This then led to a discussion with other participants and revealed varying levels of use of mobile data around the world - indicating its potential and the possible way forward for front line policing. Other topics being covered during the week included, Cyber Crime/Fraud, Child Exploitation, Identity Theft, Outlaw Motor Cycle Gangs and Search and Rescue. The last followed by a large scale demonstration of search and rescue capabilities using lifeboats and a helicopter. Cyber Crime was a topic which touched the careers of nearly all the participants and it was clearly evident that this is going to continue as an ever growing problem. Tackling this problem is difficult as police officers have borders and jurisdictions, but internet criminals don’t conform to these. The increased co-operation by police forces and countries using agencies like Interpol

The ‘British Bobby’ uniform was in demand for photograph opportunities

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Police World Vol 58 No.3 2013