Policing Board Member and Ulster Unionist MLA Alan Chambers has warned that the Police Service of Northern Ireland is now so under pressure that it is struggling to respond to serious disorder and the everyday crime impacting communities across Northern Ireland.

Mr Chambers said:

“The Police Service of Northern Ireland is an exceptional service that is admired and utilised across the UK. Just last week, its officers were training colleagues from Police Scotland in public order and riot control. Yet here we are again, with PSNI officers facing violent disorder on our streets. Our professional and courageous officers are being injured and pulled off the front line, adding to the pressure on a force already stretched to breaking point. 

“This is the result of years of under-resourcing by the Department of Justice. The PSNI has been so hollowed out that it is struggling to respond to sustained unrest and deal with everyday crime. It speaks volumes that officers from Police Scotland are being brought in to make up the numbers.

“Right across Northern Ireland, people are reporting burglaries, antisocial behaviour, and other crimes, with response times not at the level they should be. That’s not the fault of our police officers, but rather the result of a service that doesn’t have enough boots on the ground due to under-resourcing by the Department of Justice.

“The Finance Minister needs to follow the same approach he took with health and ring fence part of the Justice budget for policing, especially to support recruitment, and the Justice Minister also needs to stop dodging responsibility. Making sure we have a properly resourced police service isn’t an operational matter; it’s a strategic duty that requires urgent attention.”

“If further evidence were needed, the stark warnings below from the Chief Constable and echoed by the Police Federation speak for themselves:

“Since 2010, the PSNI has been critically underfunded. This neglect takes no account of the enormous demands placed on us by legacy issues or the unique challenges of policing in a post-conflict society. Our resourcing levels are not just inadequate- they are dangerous.”