(De)politicisation of private security. Parliamentary discourse on the private investigation sectors in Belgium and the Netherlands.

• In Event: Comparative Approaches to Policing and Security

Abstract

Today, the business of private investigation represents an important place within the security landscape. The sector encompasses a wide variety of services, ranging from criminal, financial and corporate fraud investigations to insurance claims investigations and asset tracing. Private investigators serve various types of clientele, such insurance and financial companies, lawyer firms, and individual citizens.

It has been observed that the activities of private detectives, similar to those of other, more visible, private security actors, have been at the centre of political debate for decades. In particular, issues regarding their regulation and accountability have been high on the political agenda. However, despite this important observation, research on the politics of this particular part of the private security sector remains rather underexplored. In particular, very little understanding exists regarding the exact processes – and their consequences – of politicisation and de-politicisation in the domain of private investigations.

Therefore, this paper takes a closer look at how patterns of (de-)politicisation developed in two neighbouring countries, Belgium and the Netherlands. As a point of departure, the research explores and compares the degrees and manifestations of (de-)politicisation since the 1990s, when private investigation regulations in both countries were introduced, until today. In our analytical framework, three processes are examined, including increases and decreases in salience, polarisation of opinion and the expansion or decline of actors involved. Empirical data are drawn from parliamentary records between 1990 and 2022.

The finding of our study demonstrates how processes of (de-)politicisation have been largely shaping policies regarding private investigation in both countries. As such, our innovative approach will prove useful in expanding our understanding of how private security policies and regulations have been introduced, amended and adopted.

Authors

• Jonas Maas, Ghent University

• Pieter Leloup, Ghent University/Free University of Brussels