Police complaints group to be set up

The Police Ombudsman's Office, the Police Federation and the Superintendents Association of Northern Ireland have agreed to set up a joint Working Committee following results from the first ever survey of officers' attitudes to police complaints.

The results of the survey, which was conducted among PSNI members a year ago by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency for the Police Ombudsman's Office, suggest that officers have mixed views on the issue.

It found that most officers supported the concept of independent investigation of complaints and believe the Police Ombudsman's Office helps people have confidence in the police. However, officers have expressed concerns about the process.

Police Ombudsman, Nuala O'Loan, said she believes the joint Committee will herald a new chapter in the relationship between the bodies: "Other research has shown that my Office has won the confidence of the general public: this survey shows that I have more work to do to win the confidence of police officers," she said. "It has provided a useful 'benchmark' for the task which lies ahead. I hope the Committee will help me reach out to officers and will help the communication between our organisations."

A questionnaire was distributed to around 9,900 officers and almost 40% (some 3877) of them responded. Out of that 40% response, one third (1,300) had experience of the Police Ombudsman's Office.

Police Federation Chairman Irwin Montgomery said his organisation was totally committed to the principle of independent investigation of complaints against police officers. "We believe the survey illustrates that there is much still to do to win over the support of individual police officers for the present arrangements and we look forward to working with the Police Ombudsman's Office to achieve this," he added.

(MB)