PSNI

Details of PSNI officers and staff based at MI5 included in ‘potentially the UKs worst data leak’…

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a pole with a bunch of stickers on it

As nekomimi pointed out in the comments on yesterday’s post: The fact this came from a freedom of information request is hilarious. All that time the provos spent trying to gather information on the police or infiltrate them and all they had to do was ask nicely. You really could not make it up. In his story in the Beltel Sam McBride points out that information on 39 serving officers and staff working at MI5 in Holywood was included in …

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What has changed that the PSNI are nervous to be seen at an event they supported in the past?

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people holding flags during daytime

The recent statement from Assistant Chief Constable Bobby Singleton on the PSNI Executive Team’s decision to prevent its officers from walking in uniform during Belfast Pride, leaves some unanswered questions. The fact we can guess the answers to these questions does not mean they should not still be asked. Firstly, he makes the point that there are “clear expectations for all officers and staff in terms of our impartiality and prohibit officers from wearing their uniform or being identifiable as …

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The Garda keep poaching our peelers…

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man in black and white adidas vest

Over in the Bel Tel Allison Morris reports on another senior PSNI person moving south to join the Garda. From the article: The move by Jane Humphries to leave the PSNI for a senior post with An Garda Siochana after 29 years’ service in the force. A former district commander in Newry, Mourne and Down, Ms Humphries is amongst the most senior women in the force. In 2020 Paula Hilman announced her departure, leaving the PSNI to be Garda Assistant …

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PSNI arrest and charge almost twice as many Catholics as Protestants…

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Rory Winters over at The Detail has a report on the arrest profile of the PSNI. From the story: Close to double the number of Catholics than Protestants were arrested and charged over a five-year-period in Northern Ireland, according to PSNI statistics released to The Detail. From the start of 2016 until the end of 2020, over 57,000 Catholics were recorded as being arrested with almost 27,000 charged. By contrast, nearly 31,000 Protestants were recorded as being arrested with under …

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Catholic recruitment to the PSNI drops to 24% last year…

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As the PSNI turns 20 the issue of Catholic representation is in the news again. From the BBC: Of 193 officers recruited in 2020, 75% (144) were Protestant and 24% (46) were Catholic. It comes as the PSNI launches a new recruitment drive in the week that marks 20 years since it was established. Legislation, which ran for a decade until 2011, saw Catholic officer numbers increase fourfold – they now make up 32% of the service’s 7,000 officers. But …

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Not a great week for the police…

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police, cop, police uniforms

The Sarah Everard murder is the stuff of nightmares. A serving police officer, Wayne Couzens showed a warrant card and used handcuffs as he kidnapped Ms Everard before her rape and murder. Thankfully he was caught fairly quickly and he will spend the rest of his days behind bars. But the Met has a lot to do to restore public confidence in the police, especially amongst women. If you have not watched it yet the BBC documentary Bent Coppers: Crossing …

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Space to Police

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Simon Byrne is the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Today he writes for Slugger about the policing challenges during the COVID 19 pandemic  2021 is a defining year for policing. The Police Service of Northern Ireland will have been around for two decades. The world around us has changed so much in those 20 years and whilst new opportunities and issues have emerged, the challenges of the past still remain very much in the present for …

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PSNI blunder into PR disaster of their own making…

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You really do wonder what the police were thinking yesterday when they blundered their way into a private commemoration of the 29th anniversary of 1992 Sean Graham bookmakers atrocity. As well as disturbing the event they decided to go even further and arrest one of the victims. Such gross insensitivity you could not make up. Coming just days after the police stood idle and watched dozens of UVF men parading in East Belfast, the police have opened themselves up to …

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Phoney Polish peeler gets himself into a pickle with the proper police…

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A story in today’s Irish News provides a bit of a distraction from the unending doom: A 26-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of impersonating a police officer in Co Armagh. Police said an off-duty officer reported being pulled over on the M1 at Craigavon towards Portadown at around 1am by a vehicle he believed to be a police car. The driver of the unmarked grey Skoda Superb registration FT62 CEX which had been fitted with blue flashing lights, …

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‘A united Ireland that is socially liberally, tolerant, European and economically successful is attractive’

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Irish unity could be an attractive option if the new nation is socially liberal, outward looking, multi-cultural, European and economically successfully, while respecting both the Irish and British cultures and traditions, believes Will Glendinning. To be economically successful it may need support from both the European Union and the United States, he adds. Will is a former chief executive of the Community Relations Council, has been an Alliance Party MLA for West Belfast and was also a member of the …

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‘Politicians will argue, they will fight over it and they will come up with reasons for not dealing with the past’

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It was hoped that the Patten reforms would herald a new start for policing in Northern Ireland, but, argues Denis Bradley, the PSNI remains burdened with its legacy from the old RUC. Denis is a former vice-chair of the Northern Ireland Policing Board and co-chair of the Consultative Group on the Past. He was talking in the latest Forward Together podcast from the Holywell Trust. “In the setting-up of the PSNI, the new service inherited, carried with it, the deeds …

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Alliance conference in party mood despite leader’s absence #APNI2020

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Alliance delegates gathered again in the Stormont Hotel for their annual conference, marking the 50th anniversary of the party’s formation and celebrating a year of growing success at three successive elections (local, European and Westminster). The mood was upbeat, attendance was strong, yellow clothing was prevalent, and while there are no elections just around the corner to fire up the crowd, there was a sense of achievement and satisfaction at the party’s fortunes.

Three figures were notably absent including party leader Naomi Long who had been diagnosed with a severe respiratory infection and was on bed rest and fluids under doctor’s orders. Deputy leader Stephen Farry delivered the conference main speech which also held from PSNI Chief Constable Simon Byrne, former Secretary of State Julian Smith, and young councillors.

Reflection on Attestation Ceremony of latest PSNI Constables – an occasion of hope…

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During August, I attended an attestation ceremony for the latest PSNI constables in the police college at Garneville. It was my first time both in the college and at the ceremony. The attestation took place in the assembly hall where the soon to be constables, their families and guests gathered. I found it formal without being overly formal and felt sufficiently at ease to make notes on what I would call the ‘Order of Service’ for the occasion. After introductions, …

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George Hamilton: it will be the failure of our generation if we do not reinvigorate our efforts

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With only seven and a half weeks left of his five year term as PSNI Chief Constable, George Hamilton delivered a lecture at Queen’s University this evening to “help signpost the next steps for policing with the community”. He called out those “across the political spectrum … [who] have too often defaulted to the blame game … finding it easier to blame the police without taking any responsibility for the context in which police are being asked to operate”. Hamilton …

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“we need to remove legacy policing from contemporary policing…”

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A timely reminder, should one be needed, from Newton Emerson in the Irish Times this week, that when Sinn Féin talk about ‘agreement’ on the “need to remove legacy policing from contemporary policing” what they mean is “No prosecutions, please.”  From Newton Emerson in the Irish Times It is all or nothing on dealing with the legacy of the Troubles. Either all sides must face the same prospect of prosecutions and convictions, or all sides must be given an amnesty …

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Just Say Momo – how the PSNI are helping to spread hoaxes and hysteria online

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If you are a member of any parents’ social media groups, then you might have heard of “Momo”, apparently a game that challenges children to perform dangerous tasks. The story is often accompanied by a horrifying picture, which is actually a sculpture created by a Japanese special effects company called Link Factory. The story is a well-known hoax, and the urban legend debunking site Snopes article has an excellent article on the subject. At the time of writing, the hoax …

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“Fair employment and equal opportunities legislation are built upon open and transparent practices, free from political interference…”

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The, at best, ill-considered comments by Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald yesterday, on potential candidates from within the PSNI to succeed George Hamilton as Chief Constable, have prompted a sharp reminder from the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland to the NI Policing Board of its responsibilities under equality legislation to recruit in a non-discriminatory way. The Equality Commission has expressed its concern about the recent comments made by the Sinn Féin President about the appointment of a new Chief …

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George Hamilton, Chief Constable of the Police Service announces his retirement…

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Northern Ireland’s top cop has said he will retire in June. From his Twitter post: I have today informed @NIPolicingBoard of my intention to retire at the end of June. It’s been a huge honour to have served the public through policing for almost 34 years & undoubtedly the greatest privilege of my career has been to serve as Chief Constable of @PoliceServiceNI — Sir George Hamilton (@SirGHamilton) January 28, 2019 According to his Wikipedia page, he is only 51, …

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With 80% of police recruits now coming from the Unionist community, is this another example of how Northern Ireland is regressing?

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The Irish Times is reporting that the number of Nationalists joining the PSNI is continuing to decline, and they may need to reinstate the 50/50 recruitment policy. Four out of five recruits to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) are from the Protestant community compared to just one from the Catholic community, the PSNI has disclosed. If this trend continues then politicians will have to consider reinstituting the 50:50 Catholic:Protestant system of recruitment, the PSNI deputy chief constable Stephen Martin indicated on Monday. Under …

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