
The Crime Agents Exclusive: inside Britain’s counter terrorism HQ
Jan 27, 2026
Laurence Taylor, Assistant Commissioner who leads UK Counter-Terrorism Policing, speaks about life inside Britain’s Counterterrorism Operations Centre. He describes the scale of live investigations and recent foiled attacks. He outlines threat types from Islamist and extreme-right to state-linked risks. He also discusses online radicalisation, AI, tech platforms’ responsibilities, and pressures on Prevent and capacity.
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Centralised Counterterrorism Hub
- The CTOC centralises counterterrorism work by co-locating police, MI5, MI6, GCHQ and military partners.
- Laurence Taylor says this hub improves intelligence sharing and national response speed to threats.
Pride In The Role
- Laurence Taylor describes his new role as the best job in policing and a huge privilege.
- He praises the police teams and partners he works with across counterterrorism policing.
Current Caseload And Threat Mix
- Counter Terrorism Policing handles about 800 live investigations and stopped 19 late-stage attacks in recent years.
- About 75% of cases are Islamist-related, 25% extreme right, with rising counter-state work near 20%.
