The Stroomplan joins forces against drug offenders

With the Stroomplan, the federal government is tying the drugs issue in the port of Antwerp and the criminal networks that are active in the city together. The plan bundles the forces of local and federal police, customs, social and tax inspection and the public prosecutor in a single task force that will eventually add up to 80 people. “Drug gangs are disrupting the city and society. The task force is intended to break up their crooked business models,” says Party Chairman and Mayor of Antwerp, Bart De Wever.

Improved screening

A central tenet of the Stroomplan is improved screening of everything that arrives at the port of Antwerp. In addition to that, the plan contains a trial project on the screening of port workers. “Certain jobs are vulnerable to corruption. Companies that wish to do so will have the opportunity to screen people for that job,” explains Minister of Security and the Interior, Jan Jambon.

Maximum openness and maximum control

The customs service is also being reinforced. There will be 30 extra workers and newer scanners to more effectively detect drugs in containers. Furthermore, fines are set to go up for operators that do not submit selected containers to customs for checks. One option will be to subpoena operators that don’t (or won’t) get the message. “All these measures are turning the port of Antwerp into the leading Smart Port. Maximum transparency, but also maximum control,” explains Minister of Finance and the Combating of Fiscal Fraud, Johan Van Overtveldt.