Organised crime 'chronic and corrosive' to the UK - National Crime Agency

Sr'Crime reporter(wp/bbc):::

The threat of organised crime is "chronic and corrosive" to the UK and more money is needed to tackle it, according to the National Crime Agency.

Head of the agency, Lynne Owens, said organised criminals were killing more citizens per year than terrorism, war and natural disasters combined.

She said offenders took advantage of the ever-changing face of technology to dominate local communities.

The NCA is calling for "significant new investment" to combat organised crime.

On Tuesday, the agency will launch its annual national strategic assessment (NSA), which exposes how organised criminals are exploiting advances in technology.

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Adopting new methods, and using these alongside old-style violence, organised criminals "Against a backdrop of globalisation, extremism and technological advances, serious and organised crime is changing fast and law enforcement needs significant new investment to help combat it," Ms Owens said.

"This is the most comprehensive assessment we have ever produced and describes in detail the growing and ever-changing nature of the threat posed by serious and organised crime - to individuals, to communities and to wider society."

The NSA draws on information and intelligence from sources across law enforcement, as well as many public and private sector organisations, the NCA said.

The NCA is the agency charged with apprehending those who pose the most serious risk to the UK.commit a multitude of crimes, dominate communities and chase profits, the NSA will show.