Justice Minister: NCA must be operational in NI

The Northern Ireland Justice Minister has said that the National Crime Agency (NCA) should be integrated into the Province to aid a “serious deficit in its law enforcement arrangements”.

The NCA does not currently operate in Northern Ireland because Sinn Fein and the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) are deeply opposed to it. Any plans for the NCA to move into the Province would have to be approved by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

David Ford was speaking on Monday (September 8) after sending revised proposals for the operation and accountability of the NCA to the justice spokespersons of the major political parties, as well as the Northern Ireland Justice Committee and the Northern Ireland Policing Board (NIPB).

He said additional pressure is being put on the Police Service of Northern Ireland because it is not able to use NCA expertise.

“This dire situation needs to be resolved. I believe that this paper provides an appropriate structure for this jurisdiction and, critically, respects police primacy and gives the NIPB an important role,” he said.

Under the new proposals, the NCA could not use policing powers in Northern Ireland without the agreement of the chief constable, who would then be accountable to the NIPB for providing that agreement.

Mr Ford added that the issue needed to be resolved sooner rather than later: “In terms of timescale, this needs to be resolved soon. The first anniversary of the establishment of the NCA is October 7. We have already lost out for almost a year without its full operation here and that should not continue.”