IF WE WANT POLICE SUPPORT, WE HAVE TO HELP THEM GET RESULTS


TAPA is not an association that stands aside and expects others to find solutions to the problems facing our members. We believe in the value of close engagement with other supply chain security stakeholders and we actively call upon our members to support initiatives that are designed to benefit us all.


In this edition of Vigilant, we look at three very topical issues where others are taking a lead:


• The resurgence of the migrant crisis in Calais and its impact on the transport sector escalated in June when a driver was killed in a collision caused by migrants blocking a main road to bring trucks to a stop. Companies are now calling on the French authorities to take urgent action to protect drivers from further attacks;


•


In the Netherlands, where cargo crime has been a major concern for many years, the latest initiative from the Dutch Police is a new 24hr Cargo Theft Reporting Hotline to provide timely and vital intelligence to help in the capture and prosecution of offenders;


• And, in the UK, police are working with Motorway Service Area (MSA) operators and bodies such as the Road Haulage Association to address the significant rise in thefts of products from trucks when drivers stop for rest breaks.


As the supply chain security professionals of major Manufacturers and Logistics Service Providers, TAPA EMEA members will hope the authorities and their partners succeed in each of these areas. We will benefit greatly if they do.


We must, however, all be asking ourselves what we can do to support driver safety around Calais, to report cargo crimes we suffer in the Netherlands, or to better protect our drivers, vehicles and customers’ products at UK MSAs. I suspect we all know we can do more.


The three issues I have highlighted are all extremely important to enhance supply chain resilience but we cannot stand back and just hope they are successful. Let’s think about how


welcome 2 CHAIRMAN’S VIEWPOINT


we can contribute to their success because, otherwise, we may lose this great support. This is particularly true when it comes to police-backed projects such as the Dutch cargo crime hotline or the proactive law enforcement response we are seeing at UK motorway services.


In the UK, in particular, I am sure we are all aware of the unprecedented demands that have been put on police officers in recent weeks and the bravery of officers who are usually first on the scene of tragic events like those in London and Manchester.


When you consider the huge pressure on the police to protect the public, we should be enormously grateful, and I have to say humbled, that law enforcement agencies are still finding the time and resources to investigate cargo crime, and to be working so proactively to stop the criminal gangs who are involved in these thefts.


Being grateful, though, just isn’t enough. We must get involved and prove to law enforcement agencies especially that their efforts bring results. That means notifying the Dutch police if you are a victim of crime in the Netherlands or dialling 999 to alert police of incidents in the UK. It also means reporting as much intelligence as possible to TAPA’s Incident Information Service (IIS) that we can share with our law enforcement partners too.


Every Euro of police expenditure is precious. And, every project is measured to see if the money is well spent in terms of the results it has delivered. If we want police support, we have to prove it with action, not simply words.


Thorsten Neumann Chairman


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