Police Federation Demands Return To Govt

The Chair of the Police Federation for Northern Ireland (PFNI) has urged politicians to restore devolved government.

The region has been left "with drift and indecision" according to Mark Lindsay, who was speaking at the PFNI Annual Conference yesterday, Wednesday 05 June.

The Assembly and Executive collapsed two and a half years ago, in January 2017, when the DUP and Sinn Fein split in a bitter row. Politicians are now engaging in negotiations aimed at restoring powersharing, the first round of fully-fledged talks since February of last year.

Mr Lindsay told delegates that Assembly members should be at Stormont establishing a Programme for Government and fighting for increased PSNI numbers and adequate resources.

He said: "The job of repairing fences and getting back to legislating and running Northern Ireland should trump all else.

"If politicians are to rebuild public trust and confidence, then they will have to move from narrow, sectional demands and instead consider the greater societal good.

"Settle your differences inside Stormont and not outside it. It's time to end shrill megaphone voices for what passes as local political engagement. Deliver what people want and what policing and society needs."

Mr Lindsay also revealed details of the latest PFNI Workforce Survey which found that 92% of officers believed that morale across the PSNI was low. Three-quarters said they were expected to work faster when the pressure built up, even if it meant taking shortcuts, while more than 80% reported not having enough officers to manage all the demands made on them as a team.

Mr Lindsay continued: "There are consequences when people have to consistently work under such unrelenting pressures, with the very real threat of punitive disciplinary action being taken if and when they get it wrong.

"This feedback from the 'coalface' is disturbing and worrying. In any other organisation or enterprise, this would set alarm bells ringing. Yet, for some inexplicable reason, the silence is deafening in some Government departments.

"Without urgent investment, further decline in service will be inevitable. We will see more officers under stress and reporting sick. More being injured on duty and more leaving for less demanding jobs."

Mr Lindsay also called for tougher sentences from the courts for those found guilty of assaulting officers.



(JG/CM)