Does Northern Ireland need new body to provide paramilitary assessment?

The NCA should reveal its findings into extent of paramilitary involvement in organised crime

A well-resourced body to monitor and disrupt the activities of serious criminals and organised crime gangs already exists in the UK.

It is called the National Crime Agency (NCA), also widely described as the British equivalent of the FBI.

The NCA's website says it "leads UK law enforcement's fight against serious and organised crime."

The NCA became operational in Northern Ireland in May.

Two months later, it announced it was taking over the investigation into allegations about the sale of Nama's property portfolio in Northern Ireland.

The NCA says it works in partnership with other law enforcement organisations "to bring the full weight of the law to bear on serious and organised criminals".

It describes its role as disrupting and bringing to justice "those serious and organised criminals who present the highest risk to the UK".

The agency's organised crime command is tasked with leading and co-ordinating efforts to "identify, pursue and disrupt serious and organised criminals".

IRA structures

Given its wide-ranging remit and resources, it would be reasonable to assume it knows the extent of paramilitary involved in organised crime in Northern Ireland. If it doesn't, it should.

If it does, it should be in a position to provide an assessment of paramilitary involvement to the secretary of state and political parties.

The security assessment to be reviewed by the independent panel announced by Theresa Villiers will contain information from the NCA as well as the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the security services.

The chief constable has already given his assessment of the current role and structures of the Provisional IRA publicly.

George Hamilton has said members of Provisional IRA were involved in the murder of Kevin McGuigan in east Belfast, but that there is no evidence at this stage that it was sanctioned by the organisation's leadership.

He has said some IRA structures still exist, but "not for paramilitary purposes".

Unless the police have uncovered significant new evidence we are not yet aware of, the assessment he provides to the secretary of state's independent panel is likely to be the same.

As the PSNI works closely with the NCA, the agency's assessment of IRA structures and involvement in organised crime will be based largely on the information it is given by the police.

So, given that the chief constable has made his assessment public, it would seem logical for the director of the NCA, Keith Bristow, to do the same.

It seems unlikely that the review to be published by the independent panel in October will tell the secretary of state and political parties anything they could not be told today by the NCA and PSNI.