The Home Office has hailed a new charter to tackle cash in transit (CIT) robbery.
According to the Government the charter is the outcome of sustained dialogue between central and local Government, banks and the security industry, trades unions representing CIT staff, and police. Home Office Minister Tony McNulty, who addressed a May 10 ‘national stakeholder seminar’, said: “Cash in transit robbery is rare outside our biggest cities with barely over a thousand incidents in the whole of the UK in 2006. There is excellent work already underway to tackle it, but we can still do more. These incidents not only levy a grave human cost, they feed the underworld economy and damage business too. As with most types of crime, we can tackle cash in transit robbery most effectively by thinking laterally and joining forces with the people it affects. This charter sets down in black and white a spirit of cooperation between Government, business, the security industry, trade unions and the police and sets real objectives for action and change. I look forward to seeing positive results flow from it."
The Met, West Midlands and Greater Manchester Police force areas account for almost half of all CIT attacks. According to the Home Office the charter is significant because it binds all the key actors into what it terms ‘a framework for action’. It calls for places where cash is delivered to be secured, whether removing overgrown bushes, improving street lighting, installing CCTV and removing obstacles and unnecessary street furniture. Safer cash delivery should be at the heart of urban design and planning; best practice should be shared; and an annual report of progress against the charter’s aims is promised.
David Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Security Industry Association, said: "I welcome the charter as a vital step towards combating this very serious crime. All the key stakeholders must now work together to share best practice and to take action to ensure that the safety of cash-in-transit couriers across the UK is protected on every level possible."
