The National Security Council met on Monday, 1 February. All the members – the Governor, Premier, Minister of Border Control and Labour, Police Commissioner, Deputy Governor and Attorney General were present.
The Commissioner gave the Council an update on recent developments. Although the figures were not finalised he was optimistic that serious crime would have shown a decrease over the Christmas period compared to last year. He reported on a concentration of police in certain tourist areas, which was well received by visitors and the public.
The Council discussed the recent fire in Grand Turk at the High School, and some subsequent attacks on public vehicles. The Commissioner reported that, while it was too early to apportion responsibility for the fire, he judged that it was most unlikely that it was in any way related to a small reduction in police numbers in Grand Turk. The Commissioner noted that there remained 38 police officers in Grand Turk. Compared to similar size populations in the UK the number remained high. It was important that recent, unrelated incidents should not be viewed as part of a wider pattern.
The Commissioner alerted the Council to the arrival of an investigative group of senior police, who would be in TCI for twelve weeks to review a number of murder cases. This had been funded by the Government.
The Council reviewed the numbers of illegal migrants arriving in TCI, and noted that the total number of arrivals had been more limited in recent months, and were also considerably fewer in individual vessels. The British Ambassador to the Dominican Republic was arranging for calls by the Governor and Minister of Border Control on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Santo Domingo to discuss illegal fishing and maritime issues.
The Council agreed that the National Security Council Advisory Group should meet in March, when the Commissioner would present a summary of the Police Force’s new Strategic Threat and Risk Assessment.
The Premier raised his recent meeting with the National Security Services Association, and the Council agreed that it would be helpful for Cabinet to review a paper on the security industry in TCI, and the possibility of introducing a moratorium on new companies.
