sou · H0B313 · 2012-03-30 00:00:00 — With a unified Swedish service there is a good framework for achieving greater uniformity where needed to ensure the activities are legally consistent, of high quality and cost-effective. The proposed agency form creates the conditions for both following up activities more consistently and achieving a better and more stable performance within the agency. In the new organisational structure, it will be easier to disseminate best practices. from both the citizen and operational perspective, and from the perspective of the law enforcement chain, a unified agency is deemed to give the best of conducting efficient and high quality activities. It is proposed that the new Authority assume the tasks that are today performed by the authorities, the National Laboratory of Forensic Science and , with the exception of the duties dealt with by the . will retain its duties. The Authority will thus be responsible for all activities in 2009/10:175. 5A director-general-governed agency is led by a Director-General who is alone accountable to the Government for all the agencys activities. the country except for activities that the is responsible for. To enable full use to be made of the development potential offered by the mono-agency model and make it possible to demand accountability from the agency leadership, the Committee consid- ers that the Authority should be able to make its own deci- sions about its own organisation to a greater extent than is the case today. The fact that the internal organisation of the agency is not fixed in law or ordinance – with some exceptions – will create con- ditions for a service that is more flexible and adaptable to different types of external change. For example, the Committee does not take a position on the number of regions, nor on the location of the management of activities in the regions. In the view of the Committee, these questions should be determined in the framework of the implementing organisation that should precede the of the Authority. However, the Committee does make some proposals concerning the organisation of the Authority. The Authority is to have a national headquarters and otherwise be geographically divided into regions. There will be a national operations department at the Authority. The main focus of the national operations department should be to command and coordinate certain operational activities and in some areas to maintain specialist skills both for its own activities and to be able to assist the regions. Special investigations under the Ordinance on processing of cases of crimes by employees, etcetera (2010:1031) will be conducted by a separate department of the Authority. However, it is proposed that this department be given an autonomous standing, for example by the Government employing its head and by giving it a separate appropriation. The National Laboratory of Forensic Science will be a part of the Authority. The arrangement with as the superordinate agency for the National Laboratory of Forensic Science will thereby be abolished. Apart from the Director-General the Government is also to em- ploy the head of department for special investigations. In other respects the agency will itself appoint its managers and staff. The National Commissioner will determine his or her own deputy. The Authority will have an appointments committee that will be responsible for preparing proposals and advising the National Commissioner on the appointment of regional chief commissioners, the head of the national Operations Division and the head of the National Laboratory of Forensic Science. At the request of the National Commissioner, the committee will also advise on other appointments. The members of the com- mittee will be appointed by the Government. This will ensure pub- lic transparency and a measure of public influence on the recruit- ment process. Local and regional levels The Authority will be divided into regions. These should be viable and have a certain volume of activities. The regions will be under the leadership of a regional chief commis- sioner. In each region there will be a regional council responsible for monitoring the activities of the region and providing advice to the regional chief commissioner. The regional chief commissioner will chair the council and keep it informed of activities. The strategic direction of activities in the region should mainly be decided at regional level on the basis of the national directions decided by the National Commissioner. The regions should have the main responsibility for operational activities. Decentralised decision-making processes are required in the region to ensure and develop local activities. Operational and tactical leadership and management of activities should be conducted further out in the organisation of the region. Operational planning based on local problems, criminal intelligence and follow-up of previous actions etc. should be con- ducted at local level. The Authority will be empowered to make its own decisions on the local organisation. the decision-making structure in the Authority guarantees that activities throughout the country have local relevance and support, the Committee considers that geographical subdivi- sion of the regions is necessary. The assessment of the Committee is that far-reaching delegation is required in operational work. No matter where they live, citizens must be able to feel confident that activities promote their security and that priorities include the volume crime problems that occur in the local community. The Committees proposal is that the Authority be given explicit responsibility for collaboration with primary municipalities to reduce crime and increase peoples sense of security in their local communities. This will ensure that the municipalities have the opportunity to be involved in the activities. Relations between the Authority and the general public regards it as important to strengthen the require- ments on the Authority to have close and constructive rela- tions with the general public. Under our proposal, in its work the Authority will pay attention to and take account of the demands and wishes of people living and working in the local area. The Authority will be given a duty to develop and choose modes of working that a close and constructive relationship between it and the general public. In addition, the Authority will be required to give victims of crime the information they need in view of the crime. The Authority will also be required to ensure that it is available to the public and that activities are visible. Contact point for the general public The way in which employees act and behave in their contacts with people in various situations has a great impact on how the public perceives the Authority as an organisation, its ability to perform its duties and to act professionally. The views of the public on activities are therefore an important knowledge base for developing the Authority. The Authority should have a contact point that is well-known to the public and to which individual people can easily address both positive and nega- tive comments. The Authority should develop national rou- tines and methods for managing the views of the public and pro- feedback in individual matters. The Authority should then use the experience gained from the contact point to make ongoing improvements in its services based on citizens needs. There are areas in activities that are specially sensitive in terms of privacy and where transparency to the public is therefore of particular importance. This applies above all to activities con- cerning reports of crimes involving employees. The Com- mittee proposes that the governing board of and the local boards at the authorities be replaced by the Authoritys advisory council and a regional council in each region. The members of the advisory council and the regional councils will be appointed by the Government for a fixed period. In addition to the usual duties of an advisory council, the Authoritys advisory council and the regional councils will have the task of particularly monitoring special investigative activi- ties conducted pursuant to the Ordinance on processing of cases of crimes by employees etc. (2010:1031). The advisory council will also be responsible for particularly monitoring the activities of the regional councils. proposes that a function for coordination of the work of the advisory council and the regional councils should be set up at the headquarters. An independent review body for activities The Committee considers that an independent review body should be set up to supervise the activities of the Authority and the . will deliver a full pro- posal on the design of the organisation and its activities in a subse- quent report (ToR 2012:13). The Committees proposals on a new organisation for activ- ities entail a number of legislative amendments. In this report the Committee presents proposals for amendments in the Act (1984:387), the Ordinance (1998:1558), the Ordinance on processing of cases of crimes by employees etc. (2010:1031) and in the Preliminary Investigations Ordinance (1947:948). also proposes two new ordinances: an ordinance with instructions for the Authority and an ordinance on forensic activities at the Authority. Under the proposal, the Ordi- nance with instructions for (1989:773) and the Ordinance with instructions for the National Laboratory of Forensic Science (1978:677) would be repealed. The Commit- tees proposals on a new organisation for activities will necessitate amendments in a large number of other statutes as well. Moreover, certain additional amendments will probably be needed in the statutes mentioned above. Proposals for such amendments will be developed within the framework of the Committees on- going work (ToR 2012:13). An organisational change on the scale involved here requires major efforts to identify, prepare and implement the measures that are needed before a new organisation for the can enter into effect. The Committee considers it essential that the changes are carried out on the basis of good planning and cooperation between several parties at strategic and operational level. Moreover, this must be done in the shortest time possible so as to limit produc- tivity losses and poorer services to the public. The scale of the work involved in implementation and the need for extensive and thorough preparation, combined with the time factor, strongly indicate that a special implementing organisation should be created. therefore proposes that the Government give an inquiry the task of preparing and implement- ing the creation of the Authority. In line with the position adopted by the Riksdag and the Gov- ernment, a government agency should as far as possible take its own decisions on its own organisational design. experience from previous reorganisations creating mono-agencies, it is important that before reorganising the , the Government sets clear points of departure for the design of the organisation. By means of well-considered terms of reference for the inquiry, the Government can exercise real influence on the details of the reform. therefore presents proposals on a number of key points from which the inquiry should proceed. A successful implementation depends on close cooperation with the organisation. Close dialogue with organisations repre- senting the staff during the process of change will also contribute to a good outcome. The main task of the inquiry should be to identify, prepare and implement the measures and decisions that are necessary for the new authority to be able to function from the date that has been set. Some of the measures and decisions required are to work out the new internal organisation of the Authority, the basic organisation and activities of the headquarters, the structure of the regional organisation, including geographical boundaries and regio- nal centres, the structure of the other departments and functions that should be included in the Authority, and a new opera- tional plan and budget. In addition, the division of duties and responsibilities between the regions and the national level should be clarified in new rules of procedure for the Auth- ority and new delegation procedures. Moreover, the inquiry should prepare and implement the work on employment of public officials that is needed before the Authority is converted into the new organisation. would like to emphasise that the work con- ducted by the Authority at local level will continue to be the basis of services. The regions must be viable and this requires a certain volume of activities. By viability the Committee means that the regions, based on the duties assigned to them and the financial resources allocated to them, must have the ability and capacity to conduct both basic activities and activities that require specialist skills. The population base is an important factor that affects the possibility of the regions to achieve a sufficiently large volume of activities. The regions must be sub-divided geographically and far-reaching delegation is necessary, particularly with regard to operational activities. Decision- making powers and duties should be located at the lowest suitable level. Accordingly, the implementing organisation should first take a position on which activities should be conducted locally and then on which activities, considering quality, cost-efficiencyand other factors, should be placed at regional or national level. One consequence of this approach may be that certain activities that are currently conducted by should be moved out to the regions. The implementing organisation should identify the capabilities the Authority needs to develop in order to strengthen the strategic management. The reorganisation of , the authorities and the National Laboratory of Forensic Science into a single authority opens up quite new oppor- tunities for managing and coordinating certain operational active- ties in a national perspective, compared with the current organi- sation and division of responsibilities. As a result of the regions achieving a greater ability to conduct activities that require specialist skills, the present role and duties of the National Criminal will need to change. The implementing organisation should be instructed to devise a clear and effective decision-making structure to lead the operational activities, on the intelligence model. Particular attention should be given to which specific areas are to be managed and coordinated nationally, and in which areas the national Opera- tions Division should maintain specialist skills either with its own operational responsibility or in order to assist the regions. The primary role of the National Laboratory of Forensic Sci- ence will be to take responsibility for forensic activities and quality , as well as methods development in the area at various levels of the Authority. For continued confidence in the quality of these activities, the independence of the laboratory in assessing the results of analyses must be protected and the labora- tory must be guaranteed the freedom and resources to conduct forensic research and development. The conditions required for an efficient forensic process from the scene of the crime to the labor- atory should be formulated in the course of the implementation process. Some consequences of the proposals The Committees proposal for a new Authority is framed in relatively general terms, in line with the positions adopted by the Riksdag and the Government to the effect that a government agency, as far as possible, should take its own decisions on the design of its own organisation. An organisational change and increased clarity regarding responsibility in accordance with the proposals and the detailed plans that the implementing organisa- tion may decide on will not eliminate all obstacles to high-quality, cost-effective and flexible activities, but will create consider- ably better conditions for this than the current organisation. Even when the new organisation is in place, a continued process of change will be required in the organisation before the positive effects can be fully achieved. In addition to the Committees organisational proposals, continued development of methods and procedures will be needed to obtain the best possible results given available financial and human resources. Other issues that have a far-reaching influence on the efficiencyof the include the development of a modern management style and skills development adapted to ongoing improvement and development processes. Experience of previous reorganisations in which several organi- sations have been merged into a single government agency show that during a transitional period, much energy goes into the actual process of change and that this is at the expense of the efficiency and quality of activities. The possibility cannot be ruled out that the organisational change of the will similarly lead to effi- ciency losses and other negative consequences during a transitional period. Experience from earlier reorganisations to create mono-agen- cies, and from other major reorganisations, shows also that in certain cases there is insufficient force in the process of change for the planned reorganisation to be implemented in full. A protracted process of change can lead to old structures being kept. Purposeful work is therefore essential, aimed at ensuring that the introduction of the new organisation is implemented in its entirety at the time For this to be possible, the implementing organisation must have sufficient financial and human resources to solve all nec- essary questions. It is also essential that managers at all levels have the power to enforce the decisions taken. Inadequate involvement in the process of change can mean that the changes are never implemented or that, in time, activities to their previous pattern. Conse- quently, it is necessary to involve not just managers but all those concerned in the process of change, at an early stage. The changes that the Committee proposes primarily target the management structure of services and aim to rationalise the division of responsibilities at national and regional level. The great- est changes will therefore primarily concern the reorganisation of as central administrative authority into a head office, and activities in the localities where the county chief commissioners and the inter-authority specialist functions are now placed. The localities that become centres in the new regional division of the can be expected to have wider responsibili- ties, while activities will be reduced elsewhere. activities conducted close to the citizens, for example, at municipal level, will not be affected as much by the restructuring in an initial phase. One important task for the management of the will be to ensure that the effects the Government expects of the organisa- tional change can be achieved. To manage this, performance reporting needs further development. The results of the authoritys internal governance and control as well as monitoring and evalua- tion of activities need to be analysed and if necessary followed by measures. For the further development of activities, system- atic monitoring of both national and international developments is required. This monitoring also includes studying and applying the findings of criminological research and other research of relevance to services. With regard to the activities of the National Laboratory of Forensic Science, with wider responsibility for the forensic process, it is expected that this will contribute to better results, particularly with regard to investigative activities. However, in the Commit- tees opinion, there is a risk that it will not be possible to guarantee the laboratorys impartiality in a way fully matching the current situation. In order to ensure the impartiality and continued high quality of forensic activities, the new management of the must ensure that the National Laboratory of Forensic Science continues to be guaranteed resources for conducting both forensic research and development work. The transition to a single Authority will facilitate infor- mation exchange in the organisation, as current boundaries between authorities will disappear. Rules on secrecy and authorisa- tion restrict the possibilities of individual officials accessing infor- mation other than as required in their work. In a mono-agency organisation, it is even more important that access to sys- tems is limited to certain functions and authorisation levels. The current plethora of local computer systems and registers of various types will be reduced by the new agency construction, which will gradually lead to greater consistency, higher quality and lower administrative costs for IT activities within the authority. Extensive work will be needed in the area of staff policy before the new authority can be established. Initially, the transition to a single employer and the corresponding adaptation of the four staff organisations will require both efforts within each organisation and joint measures involving the different parties. Systematic work environment efforts must be treated consistently on the basis of the new organisation. With regard to the transfer of employees employment contracts to the new Authority, it should be possible to reason in much the same way as when the was established. For example, a mono-agency organisation does not have the geographical limitation that follows from the current divi- sion into authorities. This will probably affect where em- ployees are obliged to work geographically. However, the issue of the working obligations of employees requires further consider- ation, which should be addressed within the framework of the implementing organisation. The changes in the organisational structure will require skills development, adaptation and, if necessary, new recruitment. The scale and direction of these measures depends on the decisions taken by the inquiry in the course of the continued work on implementation. On the Committees assessment, the proposals presented will have financial consequences only for central government. It will mainly be a matter of consequences for activities. The cost of the implementing organisation can be estimated at around million. Adjustment costs, which are a one-off cost, may be estimated at around million. notes that these implementation and adjust- ment costs cannot be accommodated in the current budget allo- cated to the without adverse consequences for both the implementation of the proposal and activities in general. To avoid this, another means of financing the implementation and adjustment costs is required. The Committees overall assessment is that in the long term, given no change in the level of ambition regarding duties and capa- city, activities can continue to be financed within the existing bud- get allocation when the service has a unified organisation. Our proposals do not imply a general centralisation of activities, duties or management functions. On the contrary, the Committee has had a clear focus on creating conditions for de- veloping and strengthening activities at local and regional level. The proposals presented by the Committee create conditions for efficiency gains that can be used, among other purposes, for purposeful work to strengthen the local presence both in rural areas and in areas in urban municipalities with high crime rates. A major purpose of the proposals is for activities to achieve higher quality and greater efficiency, in accordance with Government ambitions. This implies that the change should have an impact on crime, both in the form of reduced crime and in that more reported crimes will be investigated and prosecuted.