This book compares the changes that have taken place in the police systems in Belgium, Denmark, England & Wales, Germany, in particular the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, and the Netherlands. All five countries have been wrestling and are still doing so with finding the proper arrangements for the organization as well as with steering and controlling their police in ways that fit both national, or federal, and local demands, in an effort to improve police performance. The central research question is: What changes have occurred in the organization and the governance structure of police systems of Belgium, Denmark, England & Wales, Germany and the Netherlands in recent decades and why have these changes occurred?