More cash to combat serious crime

An extra £4m and an increase in staffing by 25% have been announced in the drive to fight serious crime.

The Scottish Government's new strategy will be built around four key objectives to divert, disrupt, deter and detect.

It is claimed extensive analysis has shown the scale of organised crime.

Launching the new strategy, Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said:

"We know who it is we are dealing with, we are going to take them on and we are going to take them down.

"Serious organised crime hurts our country in terms of public safety, the economy, and jobs. We need a co-ordinated approach to ensure the whole country stands up against it - on the streets, within our communities, in civic society, and in the wider economy.

"For the first time we now have a national strategy to tackle serious organised crime that goes beyond law enforcement. We also have a detailed map of the reach and extent of serious organised crime in Scotland.

"We know more about who they are, who they work with and what they are doing. Put simply, we are on to them and we will use that intelligence against them.

"Organised criminals are driven by their own greed and their desire for power and influence. However, they cannot and will not be allowed to spread their criminal networks, and today's announcement will go a very long way towards thwarting them."