Gerard Collomb, Minister for the Interior, spoke on BFM TV about several approaches to strengthening national security.
“I think we are currently facing a security problem of the utmost severity. Every country is grappling with the issue of how it is organised. [...] So looking at our organisation and trying to reform it to make it more effective – obviously, this is a challenge facing all countries,” he emphasised.
A merger of the response teams?
The Minister of the Interior has not ruled out the possibility of a merger between the GIGN and the FIPN (National Police Intervention Force, comprising the BRI and RAID).
“The organisation of the police in our country dates back one or two centuries. We are in a period of change, so nothing is off the table.” However, the Minister has ruled out a complete merger between the police and the gendarmerie.
“We have made significant progress over the last few years and I can see, on the ground, that there is perfect complementarity between the two. I believe that each can retain its own traditions because the organisation is completely different, but at the same time there must be full coordination. There must be continuity between the actions of the gendarmerie and those of the police.”
The minister reiterated the government’s commitment to creating 10,000 additional police and gendarmerie posts over five years.
