'Powers needed to fight crime gangs'

Top police officers have called for controversial new powers to force witnesses to give evidence against crime lords.

The Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) set out its vision for radical reforms of British policing, including an FBI-style unit to deal with serious and organised crime.

New powers were required to make leading members of crime gangs give evidence against their bosses, said Acpo president Chris Fox.

"We should have either compulsive or coercive powers to enable law enforcement agencies to compel witnesses to give evidence in certain circumstances," he said.

A document setting out Acpo's ideas also proposed a new frontier agency bringing together all the organisations which tackle cross-border crime such as smuggling and people trafficking, he said. It could also deal with immigration issues.

Mr Fox said the new powers to compel witnesses could be based on measures which have proved successful in the US.

"It would be based on the racketeering powers in the States where people can be brought to court. We need the power to get them into the witness box in certain cases," he said.

The president said the powers would be used to force "the very, very top tier" of crime gang members to give evidence against their bosses.

"We're talking about big players, the people who are accountants and computer professionals. We're not talking about ordinary, normal people but people who have been strongly involved in serious crime.

"At the moment, the system allows them to say nothing because they are suspected of a crime."