At the end of a very busy and challenging week, the events I attended over the weekend have reminded me of the privilege I have of being the Deputy Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland.
On Friday night the 'Making the Difference Awards' at the Grand Opera House in Belfast acknowledged ordinary people, including some outstandingly courageous children, who had dedicated their time and talents to making their street, community, school or environment a better place.
I was delighted that Dame Mary Peters was acknowledged with a special award for her lifelong commitment to sport and to the community of Northern Ireland. It was a fitting recognition of her public service, marking the 40th anniversary of her momentous Munich Olympics Gold medal win. The evening was also interspersed with outstanding song and dance performances by local young people and of course, our very own May McFetridge.
On Saturday past, I watched with immense pride as the men and women of the Police Service of Northern Ireland received the highest award possible, the Freedom of the Borough, from North Down Borough Council. The PSNI is greatly honoured to have been recognised in this way and North Down is the first council to do so.
Eighty men and women from the PSNI were led through the streets of Bangor by the Pipes and Drums of the PSNI Pipe Band. The old and the new were represented, from an officer with seven months service to one with almost 44 years. I believe the awarding of the Freedom of the Borough for the Police Service, in this our tenth anniversary year, is an endorsement of the policing service that we deliver, every single day, to all the people of Northern Ireland.
The Mayor, Councillor James McKerrow, said publicly that he felt it was the right time to bestow such an honour in recognition of the implementation of the Patten proposals and the development of the type of police service that the Royal Ulster Constabulary wanted to be. In his words "a community based police service serving the whole population equally."
I was delighted that so many people came out onto the streets, in the glorious sunshine, to show their support.
Today, those officers who paraded on Saturday in their best uniform and shiny shoes are back at work delivering a personal, professional and protective policing service. I have no doubt, however, that their sense of pride, as they represented the Police Service, will not be forgotten for the rest of their police career - and probably long after that as well.
Monday, 26 March 2012
Wednesday, 21 March 2012
St Patrick’s Day Partnership Success
I was delighted to see that there was no repeat of the serious violence seen in previous years in the Holyland area of South Belfast over the St Patrick's Day period.
I know that there were still a small number of isolated incidents, which are totally unacceptable, but the extent of disruption and disorder was nowhere near the scale of that experienced previously.
It is important that I acknowledge the hard work behind the scenes which has taken place over the weeks and months leading up to St Patrick's Day. Operations like this one do not happen by chance and require months of preparation and planning. I applaud the work of our partners from Belfast City Council, Queen’s University, the University of Ulster, SOS Bus and the Belfast City Church who supported the planning process and who worked on the ground with police officers from the Thursday through to St Patrick’s Day. Without their support we simply could not have achieved our goal which was to create a safer environment for all the people of the Holyland area.
There were a small number of arrests, 13 in total. This was not because police did not proactively seek to make arrests but due to the impact the police operation, in partnership with other agencies, had on anti social behaviour and criminality. I welcome the responsible behaviour of most of those in the area over the weekend and the universities for their swift and decisive action taken in respect of the very small number of students who have been arrested.
It is important, however, that I reassure those who live in the area that the police, and partners, will continue to work together to tackle anti social behaviour and criminality throughout the year.
The events of last night following the football match in Londonderry/Derry remind us that peace within and between communities can at times be very fragile and everyone has a responsibility to behave appropriately and within the law. We must all work tirelessly in partnership with individuals, communities, agencies and elected representatives to ensure that everyone enjoys the peace and stability that they rightly deserve.
I know that there were still a small number of isolated incidents, which are totally unacceptable, but the extent of disruption and disorder was nowhere near the scale of that experienced previously.
It is important that I acknowledge the hard work behind the scenes which has taken place over the weeks and months leading up to St Patrick's Day. Operations like this one do not happen by chance and require months of preparation and planning. I applaud the work of our partners from Belfast City Council, Queen’s University, the University of Ulster, SOS Bus and the Belfast City Church who supported the planning process and who worked on the ground with police officers from the Thursday through to St Patrick’s Day. Without their support we simply could not have achieved our goal which was to create a safer environment for all the people of the Holyland area.
There were a small number of arrests, 13 in total. This was not because police did not proactively seek to make arrests but due to the impact the police operation, in partnership with other agencies, had on anti social behaviour and criminality. I welcome the responsible behaviour of most of those in the area over the weekend and the universities for their swift and decisive action taken in respect of the very small number of students who have been arrested.
It is important, however, that I reassure those who live in the area that the police, and partners, will continue to work together to tackle anti social behaviour and criminality throughout the year.
The events of last night following the football match in Londonderry/Derry remind us that peace within and between communities can at times be very fragile and everyone has a responsibility to behave appropriately and within the law. We must all work tirelessly in partnership with individuals, communities, agencies and elected representatives to ensure that everyone enjoys the peace and stability that they rightly deserve.
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