Police Service of Northern Ireland

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Coverage
Police Service of Northern Ireland
Image:PSNImap.PNG Police Service of Northern Ireland area
Area	Northern Ireland
Size	13,843 km²
Population	Approx 1.7 million
Operations
Formed	2001
HQ	Belfast
Officers	9,200
Regions	3
Stations	28
Chief Constable	Sir Hugh Orde

Website	PSNI website

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI, Irish: Seirbhís Phóilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann) is the police service that covers Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabulary, a controversial police force.

The PSNI was created on Sunday, November 4 2001, as a result of a Policing Review set up under the Belfast Agreement. This agreement required the creation of an Independent Commission on Policing for Northern Ireland, which became known as the Patten Commission after its chairman, Chris Patten.

The political party Sinn Féin, which represents about a quarter of Northern Ireland voters, has so far refused to endorse the PSNI until Patten's recommendations are "implemented in full". However, as part of the St Andrews Agreement Sinn Féin are expected to announce full acceptance of the Police Service of Northern Ireland. [[1]]

The other major nationalist party in the region, the SDLP, has joined the Policing Board and says that it is satisfied that the Patten recommendations are being implemented. In the summer of 2005, the SDLP's Alex Attwood estimated that 80% of Patten's recommendations have been implemented.

The PSNI has a positive discrimination policy, of recruiting 50% of its officers from a Roman Catholic background and 50% from a background other than Roman Catholic, in order to reverse the serious religious imbalance that existed in the RUC. The name and symbols of the organisation are designed to avoid alienating either major community. By 2006, 20% of PSNI officers were Catholic, compared with just 8.3% of the old RUC.<ref>Catholics now comprise fifth of PSNI officers — The Irish Times newspaper article, 24 July 2006</ref>

The PSNI badge features the saltire of St Patrick, and six symbols representing different and shared traditions: a crown, a harp, a shamrock, scales of justice, a torch and a laurel leaf.

It is supervised by the Northern Ireland Policing Board. The Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland deals with any complaints regarding the PSNI and investigates any allegations of serious misconduct by police officers. The current Police Ombudsman is Nuala O'Loan.

In May 2005 the PSNI took delivery of its first helicopter, a Eurocopter EC 135. The PSNI (and the RUC) relied heavily on British Army helicopter support during the Troubles and into the 21st century. The helicopter will be used for pursuit, search for missing persons and for managing parades/demonstrations etc.

In September 2005 the PSNI established the Historical Enquiries Team to investigate the 3,269 unsolved murders committed during the Troubles. The service's headquarters are located close to Cherryvalley, in east Belfast.

In September 2006, it was confirmed that Assistant Chief Constable Judith Gillespie approved the PSNI policy of using children as informants including in exceptional circumstances to inform on their own family but not their parents. The document added safeguards included having a parent or "appropriate adult" present at meetings between juveniles and their handler. It also stressed a child`s welfare should be paramount when considering the controversial tactics and required that any risk had been properly explained to them and a risk assessment completed. [[2]]

Unlike the majority of Police Forces in the United Kingdom, the PSNI is the only service that covers an entire regional area to be routinely armed[3]. With the reduction of the terrorist threat it has become usual for officers to be armed with a pistol only. Previously they frequently carried sub-machine guns or rifles.

1 Chief Constables
2 References
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] Chief Constables

The senior officer in charge of the PSNI is its Chief Constable. To date this position has been held by three people:

Chief Constable Sir Ronnie Flanagan OBE, from the formation of the PSNI. Flanagan was previously the Chief Constable of the RUC.
Acting Chief Constable Colin Cramphorn, from April 1 2002. Cramphorn was formerly Flanagan's deputy, and with Flanagan's resignation Cramphorn acted as Chief Constable while the Policing Board sought a permanent replacement. Cramphorn is believed to have turned down the post of Chief Constable due to the political expectations that he was required to fulfil, but which he apparently believed were inappropriate at that time.
Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde OBE, from 29 May 2002. Cramphorn continued as Orde's deputy until September 2002, when he was appointed Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police.

[edit] References

Weitzer, Ronald. 1995. Policing Under Fire: Ethnic Conflict and Police-Community Relations in Northern Ireland (Albany, NY: State University of New York Press). <references/>