PSNI 50-50 policy ‘disgraceful’
THE ongoing 50-50 recruitment policy of the PSNI has been slammed as “disgraceful”.
DUP MP Gregory Campbell made the comments as he tabled a motion in Parliament calling for an immediate end to the procedure.
The continuation of 50-50 recruitment is currently out for public consultation which will end on Friday.
Mr Campbell says the policy discriminates against Protestants and wants it to halt immediately.
It was begun as part of the Patten Report recommendations aimed at addressing the imbalance between Protestants and Catholics in the police force.
The motion has attracted the support of a number of MPs including Labour’s Kate Hoey and the Conservative Peter Bottomley.
The East Londonderry MP said: “The DUP have been pressing relentlessly for the ending of the disgraceful 50-50 recruitment procedure.
“We have sought to repair the damage done by others when they were in a position of leadership. Whilst I am pleased that 2010 will be the final full calendar year of this disgraceful practice and people will welcome that, discrimination for any time period, cannot go unchallenged. Fairness and equality delayed is fairness and equality denied.”
Mr Campbell said he was encouraged by the reaction to his motion.
“I am pleased that there is growing support for this move.
“Across a range of political and religious opinion people can see that discrimination on the grounds of religion is immoral and unjustifiable.
“Indeed, people can appreciate the irony of those who defend discrimination against Protestants applying to join the police being among those who protested about discrimination against Roman Catholics for many years.”
