Working to make South Armagh Safer

I very much welcome the comments of those of you who have taken the time to view my various blogs over the past few months.

Regular bloggers will know that a blog is more like a journal as opposed to a question and answer forum. However, occasionally a comment or view prompts me to address an issue which I feel would be of interest to many of you.

Much has been said, over the past few weeks, about the Police service and response delivered in South Armagh. We have some very experienced police officers working in this area. Despite the very challenging environment, and the unique policing style required, they are more than capable of delivering a police service. To suggest that somehow we are failing to deliver a service to this community is simply untrue.

The basic human right to life applies equally to Police officers as it does to members of the community and when incidents such as the Newtownhamilton bomb occur we have obligations to protect both, particularly in the knowledge that the main target of the threat is police officers.

The quality of life issues important to those who live in South Armagh are much the same as most other areas. Anti social behaviour, youths causing annoyance, criminal damage, fear of crime, vehicle theft are all being tackled on a 24/7 daily basis by dedicated police patrols.

Tangible results, with the support and in partnership with the community, are being achieved. In the past three months, in the South Armagh sector, which includes the Newtownhamilton area, 36 people have been arrested for motoring offences, 40 arrested for other types of crime, 33 uninsured vehicles removed and 28 planned search operations resulting in the seizure of vehicles, firearms, cash and stolen property.

Working in partnership with statutory groups and the local community, three Neighbourhood Watch schemes have been established and police officers are actively engaging with young people in schools.

Despite the challenges we continually face we are absolutely determined to deliver the very best Police Service we possibly can to the South Armagh area. We patrol this area the way we do, not because we want to but because we have to.

With the active support, co-operation and information from the people of South Armagh I firmly believe that much much more can be achieved.

Determined to deliver

I struggle to understand the thinking of those who plant a bomb in a quiet country town, late at night, outside a heavily fortified police station, knowing that the most likely outcome is physical danger, or at the very least, damage to homes and serious inconvenience to the very people from whom they would seek to draw support.

As I listened, on the news, to the stories of those who had been forced to leave their homes because of the reckless actions of these terrorists and wait to see what damage had been caused, my heart went out to them.

Much has been said about the delay in the police arrival and we constantly examine our response to incidents of this type. We know that the terrorists primary aim is to kill police officers and similar incidents have been used to lure police officers to an area for exactly this purpose.

In the face of this threat we have put in place steps to ensure that your Police Service, over the next few weeks and months, is even more visible. Expect to see more police patrols, expect to be stopped at check points and expect the pressure to mount on those whose intent is to bring misery and destruction to our streets – what we ask in return is that you give us your full co-operation, understanding and support.

Our determination is to deliver a personal, professional and protective police service to absolutely everyone, and that includes areas like Newtownhamilton, and I can reassure you that our resolve to do so is absolutely steadfast.

Devolution of Policing and Justice

I've just returned from a few days off over Easter with my family - a chance to recharge the batteries.

Today is an important, historic, and I believe defining, day for Policing and Justice in Northern Ireland. By close of play today we should have a new Minister for Policing and Justice, the first in 38 years. Sadly whilst some will celebrate this day, with their support for the transfer of powers, others have marked this day in the only way they know how, by bringing destruction and terror to the streets of Holywood - I applaud the work of my colleagues, the other emergency services and the local community who worked so quickly to avert disaster.

Thankfully the older gentleman caught up in the explosion was not seriously injured, not that those responsible appear to care, but many of the residents in the immediate vicinity, old and young, will have now the job of picking up the pieces and putting their homes back together and my thoughts are with them as they begin this task.

The people of Holywood, and Northern Ireland, deserve better than this. These people will not succeed and as we enter a new dawn for Policing and Justice the resilience and determination of your Police Service is as strong as ever.

2010 - 2013 Policing Plan launched

I am just leaving for the monthly public meeting of the Policing Board.

Earlier this week the Policing Board launched the 2010 - 2013 Policing Plan. This plan sets out some very challenging and ambitious objectives, performance indicators and targets for your Police Service in the areas of Service Excellence, Tacking Serious Harm and Personal Policing. We are absolutely committed to achieving them. A copy of the plan is available from the Northern Ireland Policing Board's website.

The statutory responsibility of the Policing Board is to secure an effective and efficient Police Service and to hold the Chief Constable to account for performance. This relationship is a professional and productive one but not, nor should it be, always a comfortable one.

The monthly meeting is an opportunity to share publicly the many successes of the Service in the recent weeks. Successes such as:

• Lowest monthly crime figures in December, January and February for over 12 years
• Overall clearance rate up by 2.5%
• Domestic Burglary down by 2.3%
• Lowest overall crime per 1,000 people compared to our most similar forces in GB
• A homicide clearance rate, this year, of 95%
• 20 persons currently charged or reported for Terrorist related offences
• Numerous successes in the fight against organised crime such as Cash in Transit robberies, drugs, people trafficking, extortion and money laundering
• Considerable forfeitures of money, vehicles and property under the Proceeds of Crime Act
• Small by comparison but very significant the recovery of a stolen bicycle in Holywood through the social media relationship between the police and the local Community through Facebook - a first for PSNI and NI.
  

We are never complacent and many of our successes are reliant on the consistent support and co-operation of you, the public, and with this continued support this, much more can be achieved to ensure that, in partnership with you, we do everything possible to keep you and your community safer.

Whilst we would always prefer that you report crime or suspicious activity to us direct, if you prefer to make a confidential report on anything - no matter how insignificant it may seem -you can always call the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Stepping up to the mark

I am appalled by the spate of hoax security alerts across Londonderry and Belfast last Friday and I have absolutely no idea what the people responsible hope to achieve by disrupting the lives of ordinary decent people heading home or going about their daily business, at the end of a busy week. We don't know, from a phone call, whether these devices are hoax or real and we must take every incident seriously. We will always try to minimise disruption but road closures and delays, although annoying, are necessary to prevent injury or loss of life. Currently we are examining each incident in detail and where we can identify those responsible we will take appropriate action.

As I visited colleagues in Londonderry, Omagh, Armagh and Lurgan in recent days it is very clear that resolve of officers and staff to provide a personal, protective and professional Police Service, in some very challenging environments, is even more determined. This is despite very significant attempts to place police officers and members of the public in danger, as recently as last Saturday night in South Armagh.

The accounts of how local police officers are reaching out in very challenging circumstances to work together with local communities and partner agencies to make everyone safer and to address those issues which really matter is very encouraging. This relationship can only be further strengthened by the recent cross community vote for the devolvement of Policing and Justice.

My promise to you is that we will continue to work to deliver on the commitments we make to you and what I ask, in return, is that you continue to give your Police Service the community support that it needs and together we can deliver the future which we all want and not return to the past which has nothing to offer.

We will not go back to the past

I must admit, I have been neglectful of my blog lately. Time seems to march on quickly and we all have competing pressures in our busy lives.

But I cannot let this moment pass without paying tribute to the bravery of Constable Peadar Heffron, who, through his own persistence and strong will and with the help of his family and medical staff continues to make progress after the horrific attempt on his life by terrorists.

This attack, the explosion this week at Newry Courthouse and the attempted mortar bomb attack at Keady police station, will make us all the more determined to protect our community from those who have nothing to offer. I appeal to you all to support your Police Service with your assistance and patience as we work tirelessly to root out those whose intent is clearly only one of misery and destruction.

Again the recent PSNI recruitment campaign shows that people will not be deterred in seeking an opportunity to play a part in providing a Police Service to the people of Northern Ireland. 5,232 individuals, in the first two weeks, requested application forms, those figures speak for themselves.

Community confidence and support in policing continues to grow and as we move forward in the coming days and weeks towards the transfer of Policing and Justice powers, the real local accountability this will bring will further support the delivery of community policing across Northern Ireland.

Delivery of policing will continue

Last Friday morning, one of our officers almost lost his life. In the heart of a community in Antrim, terrorists callously placed a device under his car. He is now in a critical condition. Our thoughts are with his wife and family at this time.

And we are left with the stark reality that in our communities, there are people who wish to murder our police officers. Police officers, who daily, serve those communities, work to protect people, keep them safe. I want our officers to stay safe; they want to be out on the frontline, delivering the job they joined to do.

This is not how I imagined my first blog of 2010 would read. It is difficult to accept that we still have to face such horrendous incidents. But I believe as a police service we are capable of dealing with them. Talking to many of my colleagues over the weekend, they have made it clear to me that they will not be deterred from delivery a policing service, from working with communities to protect them from harm. Indeed incidents like this only serve to strengthen our resolve to keep delivering that service.

What I am asking for now is for communities to help protect the lives of the very people who work hard to make Northern Ireland safer. Our officers and staff live in those communities, they are very much part of them. Any information, even the smallest piece may help us investigate this very serious incident and work to prevent something like it happening again.