James Ratcliffe is director of recoveries & general counsel at the Art Loss Register, London
Recent thefts from museums in England and France lay bare the thinking behind such crimes
The closure of an entire unit, specialising in the policing of a complex but valuable part of our national economy, must be wrong
The success of Europol's Operation Pandora, which recovered thousands of stolen artefacts, demonstrates the importance of international cooperation
Art crime is never far from the headlines, and it should be taken as seriously as any other crime
Reforms to the Limbach Commission, which deals with restitution claims, are welcome – but they won't be enough
Smartphones and digital cameras are new sources of evidence for investigators, but they can also aid art thieves
Unfortunately, some stolen works are simply too famous to sell, and too dangerous to keep
