Draft Programme for Government does not reflect ‘crisis’ facing policing, says PSNI chief constable

With police officer numbers at an all-time low, Jon Boutcher said he wants to see the justice and policing commitments “strengthened and broadened”.

The Police Federation for Northern Ireland has already said that from a policing perspective the draft PfG is “a disappointment of monumental proportions”.

“It lacks depth and clarity. It lacks any understanding of what officers do on behalf of this entire community. It regrettably also lacks any ambition from a policing perspective,” it said.

In its formal response to the draft PfG consultation, the PSNI states that, with declining headcount as well as increasing complexity of demand, the policing service is facing a watershed moment and is increasingly unable to keep people safe due to workforce levels being at an all-time low. The 6,358 police officers and 2,344 police staff are well below the levels envisaged in the Patten Review or New Decade New Approach, it said.

This year alone the PSNI has closed 11 station enquiry offices, sought additional police officer capacity from Police Scotland in response to serious public disorder, and further reduced the number of neighbourhood police officers, which are essential for maintaining effective local relationships and reducing crime.

The PSNI’s response to the draft PfG makes clear that in order to keep people safe, the PSNI requires:

• Immediate resources to address in year shortfalls and halt the decline in police officer and staff numbers;
• A sustainable, multi-year funding settlement to allow the police service to plan; and
• A properly resourced workforce recovery plan to reverse the decline and build capacity.

The PSNI is also seeking further information and clarification concerning specific proposals in the draft PfG, not least in relation to the additional investment that has been earmarked for specific Executive priorities, future public sector transformation, as well as the planned legislative programme during the current mandate.

The PSNI said it strongly believes these are critical for enabling not just the delivery of the PfG, but also in terms of improved outcomes for victims of crime, local communities and Northern Ireland as a whole.

Mr Boutcher told the October Policing Board meeting that he did, however, welcome and strongly support the inclusion of ‘Ending Violence Against Women and Girls’ and ‘Safer Communities’ as two of the nine immediate priorities for the current mandate.

He also welcomed the recognition that police officer numbers are at an all-time low, and that this is insufficient to respond to and deal with crime. The commitment to grow police officer numbers to 7,500 in line with the ‘New Decade, New Approach’ was also positive, said Mr Boutcher.