Tuesday 1st December 2009, 5.00pm
Arts Lecture Theatre, New Arts Faculty Building

'The Exciting Challenge of Counter-Terrorism Strategy'

Seminar by
Sir David Veness, Chairman of the E-Learning Programme Board, CSTPV

Sir David Veness, served as Under-Secretary-GeneraI of the UN Department of Safety and Security from its creation in 2005 until June 2009. This role carried responsibility for UN operations globally. Prior to this appointment, he was Assistant Commissioner (Specialist Operations) New Scotland Yard from 1994-2005. He joined the Metropolitan Police as a cadet in 1964 and as a constable in 1966. In the course of his police career he specialized in serious crime investigations, hostage negotiation and counter-terrorism. David was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge (MA, LLM) and attended the Royal College of Defence Studies 1990.

David was awarded Queen's Police Medal in 1994, appointed CBE in 2000, and was Knighted in 2004.




Abstract

Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller (former Director-General of MI5) has commented “I wish life were like ‘Spooks’, where everything is (a) knowable and (b) soluble by six people”. (Radio Times 30 October 2009)

Counter-terrorism strategy is less entertaining than an episode of Spooks, but it is exciting and could be more effective.

This year Her Majesty’s Government published “The United Kingdom’s Strategy for Countering International Terrorism” known as CONTEST. The Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown MP Prime Minister writes in the foreword to CONTEST “It sets out a comprehensive approach for tackling international terrorism from the international through the national to the local”. The CONTEST strategy follows four main work-streams of the strategy: PURSUE, PREVENT, PROTECT and PREPARE.

In a time span equivalent to an episode of “Spooks”, this seminar will seek to grapple with these issues and to explore how the instruments of counter-terrorism strategy could be enhanced.