The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has strongly condemned a surge in "shocking and disgusting attacks" on its officers, reporting a high volume of assaults and vehicle ramming incidents over the last year.

Deputy Chief Constable Bobby Singleton is calling for greater respect for officers, whose primary aim is to keep communities safe. He highlighted a distressing incident where an officer, tending to a detained patient, had blood—later confirmed as HIV positive—sprayed directly into her face and eyes, leading to months of worry and medicated treatment.

Statistics from 1 October 2024 to 30 September 2025 show there were two thousand, six hundred and thirty (2,630) assaults on officers. This year alone, there have been more than 100 reported incidents of police vehicles being rammed, resulting in 21 vehicles requiring repairs at an estimated cost of £140,000. DCC Singleton noted that ramming incidents often occur when individuals try to evade police or avoid arrest, essentially "using their vehicle as a weapon". He stressed that the damage to vehicles also takes emergency vehicles off the road for repairs, hindering the PSNI's ability to respond to 999 calls when lives may be in danger.

"It is a testament to the courage of our people that they will put themselves in situations where they are at risk, in order to protect communities from harm," he said.

The recent assaults on officers include being pushed, kicked, and bitten, and blood being spat at them, with one officer also reporting being sexually assaulted.

In response, the PSNI is introducing a dash-cam pilot scheme in the south area next month. The aim is to deter ramming incidents, enhance officer safety, and crucially, improve criminal justice outcomes when offenders weaponise vehicles against police.

DCC Singleton was firm that such violence should "never be accepted as 'part of the job'" and called for society-wide support for policing, concluding: "We cannot, and will not, simply stand by and accept it."