The "Essex Boys" were just a bunch of obnoxious drug dealers. Now, locally speaking they did have "some" control: Tucker had a few stakes in local bars and nightclubs and his connection to the bouncer scene made sure he did hold some power over some of the drug flow in Essex. In terms of business accumen and (slight) inroads into more organized criminal activity, they were still at least a step above your average "posse" street gang in inner city London.
Nevertheless they were still low on the local food chain and they certainly weren't important enough to warrant them a green light for their reckless and arrogant behavior at the end of their "career" when they were more occupied stuffing coke up their noses and shooting nubain in their veins. At one point they must've upset basically every serious firm in the area, from London to Essex to Kent: Kenneth Noye, the Blundells, the Adams, the Arifs, the Brindles, the Canning Town guys, the Walkers, the Daleys...basically even local firms that hated each others' guts weren't exactly mad to see Tucker, Tate and Rolfe kick the bucket.