The Police Ombudsman, Jacqui Durkin, has said remarks attributed to her during an appearance on the Stephen Nolan show today (Thursday 13 August 2026) have been misconstrued.

She contacted the programme "to absolutely clarify my repeated assurance during our interview that my Office will fairly, impartially and independently investigate valid complaints."

Writing to Stephen Nolan, she said: "I believe our discussion about vulnerable victims of alleged sexual abuse who make complaints to my office and the need for them to be treated with dignity, respect and to be believed in the first instance has been misinterpreted and presented as an approach of complaint pre-determination. I completely refute any such suggestion, and I repeatedly stated throughout our interview that my Office was independent and investigated complaints fairly and impartially with evidence led outcomes.

"I clearly stated: "You don't automatically assume this is a vexatious complaint. We are neutral and we are independent because until you have evidence to support or to negate the allegation that they've made, you have to assume that they've come forward to make a valid complaint." This reflects a starting position of procedural fairness. In context, a "valid complaint" refers to a complaint that warrants fair and impartial consideration and investigation, not a complaint that is already considered to be true or pre-determined. "You will no doubt appreciate the importance of nuance in the context of evidence-based investigations. There is a fundamental difference between treating a vulnerable victim, who is making the most personal and sensitive disclosures in the context of a clear power imbalance, in such a way that they feel believed and that their complaint will be effectively investigated and inferring police officers should assume any allegation against them will be treated from the outset as being the truth.

"The impact of this incorrect assertion was amplified during the subsequent debate when you made a number of statements that did not reflect the nuance, asking for example:

""What is your reaction to the Police Ombudsman of Northern Ireland, the new Police Ombudsman, saying that people who make allegations against police officers of a sexual nature in the first instance must be believed".

"I repeat, there is no predetermination of any complaint alleging sexual impropriety by a police officer. Investigations are and must be thorough, evidence-led and impartial.

"Three of the four contributors to the show commented with concern on the basis of the incorrect representation of my comments, culminating in a call from Mr Jon Burrows MLA for the comments to be clarified.

"Police officers can expect and will experience fairness, accuracy and impartiality when under investigation by the Police Ombudsman's Office. I have an expectation of receiving similar standards from you and the BBC.

"I would therefore request that you ensure this matter is appropriately clarified and that the inaccurate representation of my comments is not repeated or further amplified."