Board to discuss £17m PSNI cuts
The Policing Board will meet later in the wake of government demands to slash £17m from the police budget.
An internal PSNI report saying police are not providing an effective service and have lost sight of what’s important to communities will also be discussed.
The report also said officers spend more than 60% of their time in stations doing paper work.
It will be the first board meeting since the departure of Sir Hugh Orde as chief constable.
An incident at Meigh in south Armagh, when armed dissident republicans where seen operating an illegal checkpoint, is also thought to be on the agenda of the meeting.
Cuts
The NIO has said the £17m cut in the PSNI budget is needed as part of a government drive to save £5bn in the next financial year.
However, the board said the cuts will mean fewer officers on the ground, when police say they need to improve frontline services and get more officers on the streets.
Members of the board have been angered by the content and tone of an NIO letter requesting the savings.
The letter said: “If we cannot achieve our target then the business performance review team will be asked to review budgets… and recommend ways of securing the required savings.”
Policing Board members have said this suggests government accountants will tell the police how to save money.
The NIO has insisted that its letter is not an ultimatum and said the PSNI is not being singled out.
