... Capability or Liability?
Whilst EDD teams were recognised as a good solution, there was a clear need to assure the effectiveness of the contracted EDD teams. In the absence of a government-recognised private sector assurance scheme, police specialists devised and implemented an internal process for assuring the contracted London 2012 EDD teams. This met the need as an expedient solution but was clearly not a scalable approach for the longer term and wider application.
There were a few instances during gaps between vehicle arrivals where these London 2012 EDD teams were deployed to screen the construction workers, and the dogs indicated the presence of explosives. No explosives, or explanation of possible explosives traces, were found on further investigation. Who knows what caused these indications, but one plausible explanation could be that the dogs involved might also have been trained at some point to detect other odours.
This would have prevented the Games from opening on time. As part of the complex mix of security measures, there was a requirement for some sort of explosives detection capability to screen the vast number of complex and varied delivery vehicles entering the construction site.
This is where the concepts of
‘proportionate’ and ‘effective’ apply. Using technology or visual inspection to provide the necessary level of assurance wouldn’t have been proportionate – it would have been cost prohibitive, required much more space than was available, and would have imposed unacceptable delays to the just- in-time availability of construction materials.
Explosives detection dog (EDD) teams had the potential to offer a viable alternative, providing a rapid and flexible way of screening a wide variety of construction site vehicles. As with other aspects of site security, that was a private security matter falling clearly outside the remit of policing.
Clearly an indication by an explosives detection dog team must be taken seriously. So, whilst it’s obviously essential that an EDD team needs to be effective at detecting real threats, teams also need to be highly reliable at not indicating erroneously. It goes without saying that training needs to be effective, but a robust system of assurance is also essential.
Introducing NCTAS-P
Following several terrorist attacks in 2017, one of many options identified to enhance security at sites, premises and events was the possibility of a government-endorsed accreditation scheme for private sector EDD service providers.
The National Canine Training and Accreditation Scheme – Private Security Industry (NCTAS-P) was launched after detailed consideration by the Home Office, NaCTSO (as part of Counter Terrorism Policing), and NPSA, and engagement with a selection of private sector stakeholders. It was established in March 2021 in support of the government’s Counter Terrorism Strategy, CONTEST.
Its remit is to accredit private sector EDD teams. Crucially, it is the dog and handler that are accredited as a team. NCTAS-P does so by assuring explosives odour recognition and search capability (covering buildings, areas, routes and vehicles) to a
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comparable standard to that of police EDD teams. But it recognises that the role and remit of private sector teams is very different. In focusing on assuring odour recognition and search capability of EDD Teams, it complements the long-standing British Standard BS8517-2:2016 Security dogs – Code of practice for the use of detection dogs.
From an NPSA perspective, NCTAS-P offers multiple benefits. It enables providers of EDD services to differentiate their offer from suppliers of other security dog services and justify their investment in the required level of training. It enables users of EDD services to have confidence in the teams they hire – their odour recognition capability, search effectiveness, and an appropriate response to any indications.
And it provides reassurance to government and police stakeholders that a key tool in managing the threat of terrorist use of improvised explosive devices is effective. This includes the fact that at an operational level, an indication by a NCTAS-P EDD team should be taken seriously.
At the time of writing, 64 EDD Teams from ten suppliers, a mix of companies and individuals, hold NCTAS-P accreditation. The Department for Transport separately regulates private sector detection dog capability for specific transport security purposes.
Drugs, firearms and other detection dog disciplines
Aside from threats to national security, detection dog teams can also offer valuable capability for other applications within and beyond security. Whilst NCTAS- P is limited to accreditation of private sector explosives detection dog teams, many of the benefits and challenges of using detection dogs will be relevant to other applications, including the detection of drugs and firearms, and much of the guidance will also be applicable.
For further information visit:
www.npsa.gov.uk/canine-detection-0
See page 30 for detailed references. >
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