| Douglas BrandOBE | |
|---|---|
| Chief police adviser to the Ministry of the Interior, Iraq | |
| In office 2003–2005 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Douglas Brand April 28, 1951 Watford, Hertfordshire |
Douglas Brand OBE (born April 28, 1951) is a British criminologist and retired police officer who was tasked with assisting with the establishment of the newly formed Iraqi Police in the aftermath of the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Police career
Brand spent 34 years as a police officer, of which over 20 years were spent serving in the Metropolitan Police. While in the Met, Brand was present at the Brixton riots and poll tax riots in the late 1980s and early 1990s. His Met career peaked with him heading the force's public order training centre. Having moved to South Yorkshire Police on appointment as Chief Superintendent, he introduced partnership policing with key agencies that led to the City of Sheffield being statistically the safest city in England by the year 2000.http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/839096.stm Brand's final British police role was as the deputy chief constable of South Yorkshire Police.
Iraq
In October 2003, Brand was one of two British police officers sent to Iraq in order to build up and advise the newly formed Iraqi Police force in the aftermath of the 2003 invasion of Iraq by coalition troops. Brand was made the chief police adviser to the Iraqi Interior Ministry. It was reported in late 2003 that a group of loyalists to the deposed Iraqi President Saddam Hussein put a price on Brand's head. Speaking of his decision to accept the position, Brand said "where else can you design a national police force, design a ministry of interior and mentor a police chief?" and describing the job as "one of the best jobs I have ever had". Brand was made an officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2004 for his services in Iraq.
On 11 June 2010, the Iraq Inquiry, a British independent inquiry, led by Sir John Chilcot, into the invasion of Iraq and its aftermath resumed, having recessed for the general election, and named Brand as one of the witnesses to whom the committee would be speaking. In his evidence to the inquiry, Brand stated that British and American officials had overlooked policing requirements, calling the recruitment targets set for the Iraqi police "unrealistic given the chaotic situation in the country" and claiming that the police force never had a "proper foundation".
Education
Brand combined his education while working full time. He earned his undergraduate degree from Birkbeck, University of London, followed by a master's degree in Applied Criminology at Cambridge University. He completed a D Phil in December 2023 at the Centre for Criminology Oxford University.
Personal life
Brand is married with three children. While in Iraq, Brand, 206 centimetres (6 feet 9 inches) tall, earned the nickname the "Tower of London" owing to his distinctive height. Brand is currently working as the technical Advisor to the Inspector General of the National Police Service in Kenya.
References
- England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916-2007
- ^ "Baghdad bobby". The Guardian. 21 June 2004. Retrieved 29 June 2010.
- ^ "My Iraq: Douglas Brand". BBC News. BBC. 22 March 2007. Retrieved 29 June 2010.
- "Baghdad mission for police chief". BBC News. BBC. 13 July 2003. Retrieved 29 June 2010.
- ^ Freeman, Colin (1 December 2003). "Bounty on British policeman in Iraq". Calcutta Telegraph. Ananda Publishers. Archived from the original on 3 February 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2010.
- "No. 57315". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 June 2004. p. 23.
- "Lord Prescott among witnesses as Iraq inquiry resumes". BBC News. BBC. 11 June 2010. Retrieved 29 June 2010.
- "Iraq inquiry told of post-war police training errors". BBC News. BBC. 29 June 2010. Retrieved 29 June 2010.
- "Douglas Brand OBE". Oxford Law Faculty. 14 November 2017. Retrieved 25 December 2018.