First phase of London’s new counter-terror centre unveiled

Development of the new centre, which is housed in the Empress State Building in West Brompton, was commissioned following a series of terrorist attacks in 2017 which killed 36 people.

The CTOC’s counter-terrorism operations suite is now completed and fully operational and a dedicated, state-of-the-art counter-terrorism forensics laboratory will open later this year.

Ms Patel said the “world-leading” centre will ensure “they can discover and disrupt threats more quickly to better protect the public from terrorism”.

She was accompanied during her visit on Monday (June 28) by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick and Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu, and the Director General of MI5 Ken McCallum.

The 2017 attacks and the subsequent operational improvement review – which was independently assured by Lord Anderson – highlighted the need to further develop the UK’s counter-terrorism response to meet an evolving threat.

Dame Cressida said: “The new CTOC will allow those involved in countering the threat from terrorism in London to work much more collaboratively and effectively.

“It will make Londoners, and indeed everyone in the UK, safer from that threat.

“The need for closer collaboration between agencies is something that came out of the review that I and the Director General of MI5 committed our organisations to undertake following the devastating terrorist attacks in 2017. I’m delighted that we’re seeing the tangible outcomes from that review.

“The opening of the new operations suite marks another significant step on the journey to delivering this world-class facility here in London.”

Dame Cressida added: “The investment that we, the mayor and the Government are all making will help to keep London and the UK at the very forefront of global counter terrorism capability and will keep the public safer because of it.”

Mr McCallum said: “Finding concealed threats is a difficult job. We’re always looking for ways to shave the odds in our favour.

“We know our chances of success are better when we combine the knowledge and the skills of experts from different organisations, fighting terrorism as a single team. CTOC is a massive next step on that journey – a world first.”

The new centre will continue to be developed over the next four years as different functions, teams and organisations move into the building, with the phased approach allowing operational capability to continue uninterrupted.

Ms Patel said: “The threats we face as a country from terrorism are diverse and always changing. To keep the British people safe, we must ensure we’re one step of ahead of those that seek to do us harm and attack our way of life.

“That is why I have established the world-leading CTOC, which unites partners from Counter Terrorism Policing, the intelligence agencies and the criminal justice system to ensure that they can discover and disrupt threats more quickly to better protect the public.”

She added: “This is just one of the steps we’re taking to protect the British people from terrorism. We’ve also tightened sentencing for terrorist offenders, strengthened the supervision of terror offenders on licence, ended the automatic early release of terrorist prisoners and are consulting on the proposed Protect Duty.

“The British people should be in no doubt, I will always do everything in my power to keep them safe.”

During the visit, Ms Patel and the Mayor of London were shown around what will be the new counter-terrorism forensics laboratory, which will give investigators access to some of the most advanced forensic science capabilities in the world, and the ability to do so in a much quicker and streamlined way.

Mr Khan said: “Keeping Londoners safe is my top priority and that means supporting our police and security services so they have the tools and resources to protect our city from the constantly evolving threat of terrorism.

“The new CTOC brings expertise and capabilities together in one place for the first time and I’m pleased the £412 million of investment from City Hall and the Met Police helped make this national hub a reality, working to keep London and all of the UK safe.

“It builds on the work London has already started to ensure our capital remains a world leader in counter-terrorism detection and response.”

The MPS says the need to further develop the UK’s counter-terrorism response has been emphasised by attacks in Britain and across Europe in the past two years

Since 2017, 29 terrorist plots have also been disrupted in the UK.