Law enforcement agencies will be allowed to keep half of the assets seized from criminals under a new incentive scheme unveiled this week by Home Secretary Charles Clarke on the second anniversary of the implementation of the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA).

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), the Department for Constitutional Affairs, the Assets Recovery Agency, the police, and Customs and Excise are among the bodies that stand to gain from the scheme, which takes effect from April 2006.


The agencies currently receive money from the Home Office budget to strip criminals of their assets. The police can already keep one-third of recovered cash when the value of the seizure exceeds £40 million.


Under the new incentivisation scheme, however, 50% of the monies recovered under POCA will be shared among the relevant agencies to fund on-going work. The Home Office will receive the remaining 50%.


Since POCA came into force, more than £120 million in cash and property has been seized with an average of £1 million confiscated from criminals each week.


In 2003/4, £54 million of criminal assets were recovered in England and Wales - and it is predicted that £80 million will be recovered in 2004/05.


Confiscated cash has been put back into fighting crime, victim support schemes and crime reduction initiatives. Some £3 million has been allocated to fund the community justice centre pilot in Liverpool.


A spokeswoman for the CPS said: 'We welcome the incentivisation scheme but it is not a question of it being a big birthday present. The monies recovered will be put back into training, preparing and presenting cases.'