Huw Watkins is currently a civil servant with ten years of experience leading teams within intelligence work in police and civil service arenas. Having spent much of his career working in serious and organised crime investigations and high level public protection, he retired after 32 years service and began a second career in the UK Civil Service. Taking his previous experience into the investigation and intelligence development around the trans national nature of organised intellectual property (IP) crime. He has worked with Interpol, Europol and other Member States governments, enforcement authorities and industries to assess and understand the complex nature of this crime. With a colleague, he has created a framework for investigations tackling each stage of the crime.

He is often called on to brief senior politicians, government officials and partners on the threats and opportunities presented by IP crime. He has recently commenced a project with academics in the UK to support research on transnational crime and public attitudes to counterfeiting.