Stormont cannot fund recruitment, says Police Federation

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has been told Stormont cannot find the money for a £200m plan to increase officer numbers, the Police Federation has claimed.

Speaking at a conference in Enniskillen, its chairman, Liam Kelly, said he was "appalled" by the situation.

The Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said the "consequences of not getting the PSNI back on its feet will be dire".

Justice Minister Naomi Long criticised Mr Kelly's remarks as "inaccurate and extremely unhelpful."

The PSNI recently submitted a business case for the extra cash, which was being assessed by the Department of Finance.

Mr Kelly claimed the department recently told Mr Boutcher there is no money to support the plan.

Mr Boutcher's plan aims to increase officer numbers to 7,000 – the service currently has about 6,200 officers, the lowest in its 24-year history.

The Police Federation represents the organisation's rank and file.

Addressing its annual conference, Mr Kelly said without a "last-minute rethink" by Stormont, the plan has been "effectively shredded".

He continued: "To say there is disappointment would be a gross understatement.

"It would be more accurate to say this federation is appalled by this decision.

"It is a slap in the face to our officers."

He went on to state that he believed policing is "at the back of the queue" when it comes to budget allocations from Stormont.

"Nobody in government seems to care or give a damn," he remarked.

At the conference Mr Boutcher criticised the budget allocations that have seen the policing budget cut by 6% which he says is "30% in real terms", while health and education have received extra money.

The chief constable claimed police are doing jobs they were not trained for.

"We're mainly doing health stuff, so we're even doing the work that health aren't able to do, but we're not trained or funded to do".

Recruitment is already under way, but the chief constable wanted his recovery plan funded on top of his annual budget.

A recent inspection report warned financial pressures are limiting what the PSNI is able to do, including monitoring violent offenders and neighbourhood patrolling.

In a statement, Long said comments that the recovery business case has "been effectively shredded" are "inaccurate and extremely unhelpful".

"Such narrative only serves to unsettle and demotivate an already pressurised police service," the Alliance Party leader added.

"The recovery business case has been approved in terms of value for money.

"The challenge is now in identifying sufficient funding to allow us to rebuild police numbers and I will be having meetings and discussions in the near future on the challenges of affordability and next steps."

Reiterating her support for police officers and staff, the minister added she would "continue to push for a better deal for justice".