UK plans sweeping overhaul of policing amid surge in online crimes

The British government on Monday unveiled plans for a far-reaching overhaul of policing that would centralize the fight against cybercrime, fraud and other internet-enabled offenses, arguing that the current system is no longer equipped for crimes that are increasingly digital and cross geographic borders.

Proposals published by the Home Office call for the creation of a new National Police Service, described by officials as Britain’s equivalent of the FBI, which would gradually assume responsibility for tackling serious, non-local crimes now handled across dozens of separate police forces.

Officials say about 90% of crime now involves a digital element, while fraud — much of it carried out online — accounts for roughly 44% of all recorded offenses. Without reform, ministers warn, police capabilities will continue to lag behind criminal threats.

“Crime itself is evolving,” Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said in a statement. “Criminals are operating with more sophistication than ever before, within this country, across our borders and in the online world.” The proposed changes, Mahmood said, represent the most significant reform of British policing in nearly 200 years.

The plan outlines a multi-year transition rather than an immediate restructuring, as the government moves away from the existing model of 43 territorial police forces in England and Wales (Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate policing and legal systems) that was last reformed in the 1960s.

Britain’s current law enforcement system was established by the 1856 County and Borough Police Act, which formalized local policing across England and Wales. 

Although the focus on local forces has been prized for the supposed accountability it offers to those being policed, it has meant there has never been a national police force — something ministers argue has left law enforcement ill-suited to the growing number of crimes of a national or international nature.

Under the proposals, local forces would remain but likely in a more consolidated form, with a renewed focus on neighborhood policing and visible crime. Responsibility for cybercrime, fraud, counterterrorism and other cross-border threats would shift to the new national service.

The end of the NCA

The National Crime Agency, a specialist investigative body created in 2013 and once also billed as Britain’s FBI, would be folded into the National Police Service. Unlike the NCA, which relies heavily on cooperation with local forces, the new service would operate as a full national police force with command authority, standard-setting powers and operational control.

Counterterrorism policing, currently coordinated through a network led by London’s Metropolitan Police Service, would also be absorbed into the national force.

In the near term, the Home Office plans to expand national coordination of cyber and fraud policing, invest in new digital tools and begin consolidating national crime-fighting capabilities. That includes increased use of artificial intelligence for administrative work and investigations, as well as facial recognition technology.

A new National Centre for AI in Policing, backed by £115 million over three years, is expected to test and scale technology aimed at speeding digital investigations and easing pressure from backlogs in electronic evidence analysis. Officials say about 20,000 devices are currently awaiting digital forensic examination.

The government says fragmented IT systems and uneven investment across police forces have slowed investigations and eroded public confidence. Criminals, the report argues, have adapted faster than law enforcement, using encryption, automation and online platforms to scale offenses at low risk.

An independent review of police force structures is due to report in summer 2026 and will help determine how regional and national units — including specialist cyber and fraud teams — are merged into the new service.

The expanded use of technology has drawn criticism, and the government said it will legislate to regulate facial recognition and introduce stronger oversight of digital policing tools, including a public registry of AI systems used by police.

Separately, an independent review will reassess how public order and hate crime laws apply to online behavior, amid concerns that police have been drawn into policing lawful speech on social media.