Police (Northern Ireland) Bill [HL]

My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Laird, for introducing the Bill, as he has every right to do, because it gives us an opportunity to debate one of the most important services in the community, the police. Indeed, the subject of the temporary provisions of 50:50 recruitment—I emphasise ““temporary””—and the resultant change in the composition of the police service that has occurred in the past few years is one of the most significant reasons why public confidence in policing is increasing across most of the community. From the history of recent years, I suspect that more than any other matter policing has been the subject of debate, and certainly of disagreement and division. It is a sign of how much we have changed recently that we have published a consultation paper that looks forward to returning policing to a locally elected Assembly, to be accountable to the people of Northern Ireland. Later this Session, not too far away, we will have legislation in this House to that effect. Policing in Northern Ireland has undergone significant change. That change has been possible only through the courage and dedication of the men and women who have served the community as police officers over the years. The serious disorder witnessed during last summer and September shows that it is too early to declare that Northern Ireland has become a normal society for policing, but we very much hope that policing is moving into an era which can see police officers patrol normally and help the community without fear of attack or abuse. The support of the entire community—it has been implied through many speeches today—for police officers serving that community will be important to achieve a normal society. Everyone has a part to play—the community, elected representatives and the Government. Taking the points that the noble Lord, Lord Glentoran, made, I shall repeat what I have said in this place before. If you do not support the police, it means that you support the criminals—the muggers, the rapists, the burglars, the beaters-up of old women and older people, the crooks, the spivs and the racketeers. It means that you support those who try to rip people off and make their lives a misery. There is no grey area here; it is black and white. That is the situation in a normal civic society; it is the norm in the rest of the UK and there is no reason why it should not apply to Northern Ireland. If you are not playing a part, you are on the side of those who are there to cause disruption. Much has been achieved in policing since the Belfast agreement and the subsequent Patten report that heralded a new beginning for policing in Northern Ireland. The list is impressive, although one would not think so from some of the negative speeches and twisted statistics that we heard today. The new Policing Board came into force on 4 November 2001. The board, which has been formed with cross-community participation, has broad powers to hold the police to account, and has to date established itself as a powerful and credible organisation committed to ensuring the effective policing of the whole of Northern Ireland. There were predictions of doom from many quarters. The board has overcome and challenged those predictions, and dealt with many difficult issues relating to policing in Northern Ireland. For example, there were those who claimed the board could never agree on a new badge but, on the recommendation of the board, a new badge and uniform were introduced to the Police Service of Northern Ireland on 5 April 2002. The board appointed a Chief Constable, and Sir  Hugh  Orde has shown his determination to strengthen and build upon this ““new beginning”” to policing. The board has also published the code of ethics and issued annual policing plans, the most recent of which will be launched next week. Human rights lie at the heart of policing with a new oath, the appointment of a human rights lawyer to advise the PSNI and the expansion of human rights training for all police officers and civilian staff. In all these areas, the board has demonstrated a capacity for reaching decisions on a mature, sensitive and partnership basis. I want to put on record today the appreciation of the Government and, indeed, this House for the contribution that the board members have made to the new beginning in policing, particularly as we approach the reconstitution of a new board in April. The establishment of district policing partnerships has provided an important step in helping local communities to gain a greater sense of ownership in relation to their policing arrangements. The ongoing reports of the oversight commissioner, Al Hutchinson, who has continued to oversee the process of change, have provided further assurance that the board and the Police Service of Northern Ireland have made vast progress. He confirmed last June that over 65 per cent of the 175 Patten recommendations have been fully implemented and that the remaining recommendations will be achieved in time. Although the establishment of her office pre-dates the Patten report, the work of the independent police ombudsman has been an important step in helping to increase the transparency of the police service. The structures we now have in place—the policing board, the district policing partnerships and the police ombudsman—are envied throughout the world. When people look at what is happening in Northern Ireland they can see positive progress. These structures provide a solid basis for accountability and give the Northern Ireland community the opportunity to have a real say in local policing. Policing with the community is what we all want; it is part of a normal civil society. We want policing that is responsible to local community priorities, that deals courteously and fairly with every member of the public and which values the contribution of the community to securing a just and safe society. We believe that every person and every elected representative in Northern Ireland should be able to support that and work towards that goal. That is what we are achieving, faster in some areas than in others. Public confidence in policing is increasing across most of the community and crime figures last year were at their lowest for six years. Although the number of reported crimes has increased slightly this year, we believe that reflects a greater willingness within local communities to work alongside the police in the reporting and detection of crime. As I have said, the Government firmly believe that the temporary provision of 50:50 recruitment is one of the most significant reasons why public confidence in policing is increasing across most of the community. If I did not know before I came here today, I know now that some noble Lords harbour principled misgivings about this measure, but when the Independent Commission on Policing in Northern Ireland, led by the noble Lord, Lord Patten, made its report, it reflected the agreed principle of the Belfast agreement that the police service should be representative of the society that it polices. The Patten report pointed out in paragraph 14.2 that,"““real community policing is impossible if the composition of the police service bears little relationship to the composition of the community as a whole””." It continued:"““If all communities see the police as their police, there will be a better, cooperative partnership between community and police, and therefore more effective policing””." The report highlighted the imbalance between the number of Catholics and Protestants as ““the most striking problem””—not the only problem, but the most striking problem—in the composition of the police, above issues of gender and ethnic minority representation, which the commission acknowledged were important, and I acknowledge to those noble Lords on all sides of the House who spoke to today that they are still important points. The report recommended the recruitment of Protestants and Catholics on an equal basis as an exceptional measure to try to provide a more representative police service within a reasonable timeframe. The Royal Ulster Constabulary was a fine police service with many attributes, to which I am proud to pay tribute on behalf of the Government and the House. But, despite much effort, it was not representative of the community. I am not going to discuss what the composition was, because I am not briefed and do not think it is relevant. It was not always counted as it is today—I refer to the 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. I realise that there were Catholic officers serving with distinction; there is no question about that. But the fact is that when the noble Lord, Lord Patten, looked at it, only 8.3 per cent of regular officers were from the Catholic community. I recognise that the temporary provisions remain an anathema to the noble Lord, Lord Laird, and some of his colleagues who, as we have heard today, are keen to emphasise and, regrettably at times, exaggerate the number of non-Catholics who have been denied employment as a result. It is not something I deal with as a Northern Ireland Minister on a daily basis—it the responsibility of one of my colleagues—but I have nevertheless seen the outlines and press reports with clearly exaggerated figures of people who have not gained admission to the police service. It is true, and I have to be clear on this. There have indeed been a number of candidates who have not been appointed due to the 50:50 provisions. But the vast majority of unsuccessful applicants are not appointed simply because demand to join the PSNI is astronomically high—it is nothing to do with the 50:50 provisions. Part of the reason demand is so high is the extra confidence people have that it is worth while to serve one’s fellow citizens in the community. People are coming forward in greater numbers than ever before. In the first eight competitions there were over 28,000 applications from non-Catholics—I accept that this covers everybody who is non-Catholic; they are lumped together, as the noble Baroness said. Of those, only 541 have been rejected directly as a result of these temporary provisions. In other words, less than 2 per cent of all non-Catholic applicants will have been rejected as a direct result of the 50:50 provisions. The figures that I have seen in newspaper reports—and sometimes bandied about this House—suggest that there are hundreds or thousands of people suffering discrimination because of the 50:50 provisions but the vast majority figures in percentage terms are frankly not true. That must be said to the people of Northern Ireland. I call upon the editors and journalists to challenge the politicians who give them these figures on their source. The figures are clear: 541 of 28,000 applications from non-Catholics were rejected due to the 50:50 provisions. The rest did not gain entry to the police service for other reasons. The 28,000 figure, of course, refers to the non-Catholics. There have been 50,000 applications from across the whole community since these provisions were introduced; 50,000 people queued up to join the Police Service of Northern Ireland because of the culture change. I am not claiming that the 50:50 provisions have caused that, but people can see that it is worth while as part of that and other changes in Northern Ireland. Part of the reason—it may be a side effect—is the increase in the number of females. It had not been targeted in that way, but they have realised that there is an opening for a wider section of people. In the eighth campaign for recruitment, 1,100 of these candidates successfully passed all stages of the process, but there were only 220 appointments. On that basis, it would be 110 each for Catholics and non-Catholics. For the vast majority of those who did not make it, that has got nothing to do with the 50:50 provisions. The reality is that there were far too many applications for the number of vacancies. That is why there are massive numbers of qualified candidates of both Catholic and non-Catholic backgrounds who were not successful. In other words, there is a limit on recruitment. It is not that any qualified applicant can join. That is not the case. There is a limit on numbers. But it is a reason to be proud of the confidence shown in the structures. The Oversight Commissioner has rightly acknowledged that the recruitment campaign has been a success, providing the Police Service of Northern Ireland with the opportunity to select only the most highly qualified recruits, which is an enviable position for any police organisation in today’s competitive labour market. We firmly believe that these temporary measures are justified in order to correct an acute historical imbalance in the composition of the police in Northern Ireland. But I assure your Lordships’ House of one thing—they will not stay in place a day longer than is necessary. The government policy enunciated in the past is firmly committed to achieving a progressive increase in the Catholic representation in the police service. Our stated aim is to increase Catholic representation by 30 per cent by 2010–11. Obviously, there is a review on a three-year basis. We are well on course to achieve that increase. In less than five years, under the 50:50 temporary provisions, Catholic composition among regular officers has risen from 8.3 per cent to 19.14 per cent. In the same time, female composition has risen from 13 per cent to more than 20 per cent. Your Lordships are aware that these temporary exceptional measures are reviewed triennially and will expire unless specifically renewed by an order. The current order allows for their continuation until 30 March 2007. I will turn to the Bill in a moment. But, whatever the outcome, and whether or not the House is able to debate the Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, which will start its passage in the other place next week, next February or March both Houses will be able to debate in greater detail the provision of the 50:50 temporary arrangement, because it comes up for renewal. In the short time available, I will answer some of the detailed points. The noble Lord, Lord Glentoran, raised rollover and people who qualify, but do not get in, staying in the pool. The Police Service of Northern Ireland, together with the Northern Ireland Office, looked carefully at that issue and consulted the Equality Commission. At that time, it was concluded that it was not in the interest of applications or the police. Rollover would result in an ever-increasing surplus of unsuccessful candidates in the pool—one can see how the numbers would grow from the figures that I have given. They would have little or no prospect of appointment, whereas evidence suggests that candidates who repeat the recruitment process generally improve their merit score and, therefore, their chances of selection. But their chances of selection, however good their score, are always low whether they are Catholic or non-Catholic because of the vast numbers applying for a small number of positions. Another reason is that candidates would also have to redo the medicals and vetting elements periodically as their situation might change. There would not be significant cost benefits for the Police Service of Northern Ireland. The noble Lord, Lord Rogan, asked about costs. I do not recognise his £80 million figure. In due course, if he can say where he got that from, I will do my best to answer him. In 2002–05, costs were in the region of £13 million, with an average of £10,000 per trainee. That is a three-year figure, but it also applies to the single year figure that I have in my other notes. Those figures are nowhere near the £80 million figure. I do not deny that these situations are expensive, but, on average, the Police Service of Northern Ireland receives 13,000 applications a year for only 440 trainee constable posts; that is, 220 appointments times two. With that level of applications per year, whatever the system, there will be massive numbers of qualified, good people who want to serve their community, but who cannot. It has nothing to do with the 50:50 arrangement. The noble Lord, Lord Laird, mentioned a freedom of information request. We will follow that up, but my officials are not aware of that at present.