Motion

Policing Resources

Motion TitlePolicing Resources

Motion TextThat this Assembly notes the recent report from the office of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland into the handling of a high profile child sex offender case, which found that the PSNI did not have the capacity or capability to manage the risk posed; expresses grave concern about the implications of these findings for the protection of children and for wider ambitions to tackle violence against women and girls; regrets that police officer numbers continue to fall, even after the restoration of the Executive; expresses concern that sufficient funding has not yet been secured to support police recruitment and workforce recovery; and calls on the Minister of Justice to set out what steps she is taking to support recruitment and retention, including measures to ensure that the PSNI better reflects the society it serves.

Motion CategoryPrivate Members' Motion

Motion TypeOpposition business

Date Tabled to Business Office11/11/2025

Date Selected By Committee11/11/2025

Date of Plenary Debate25/11/2025

View Official Report

Tabled By

Member Name	Tabled As
Mr Matthew O'Toole	MLA - South Belfast

Bills

Outcome/Voting

The Motion, As Amended, Was Carried by Oral Vote

Amendments

Selected Amendments

Number	Tabled Date	Amendment Text
1	19/11/2025	Leave out all after ‘fall’ and insert: ‘following the Chief Constable’s workforce Recovery Plan endorsed by the Minister of Justice and the Executive; expresses concern that the agreed funding to increase the PSNI headcount to 7,000 officers has not been made available, resulting in the PSNI being dangerously understaffed at around 6,100 officers and an available deployable workforce sitting at just over 4,500 officers; and calls on the Minister of Justice to outline how she intends to address this crisis in Northern Ireland policing, to provide an immediate update on the viability of the workforce Recovery Plan targets and what measures she will take to ensure the PSNI reflects the society it serves, including the recruitment of officers from ethnic minority communities.’
2	21/11/2025	After ‘the Executive;’ insert: ‘recognises that whilst resourcing pressures have a significant impact on policing capacity, the way in which the PSNI determines investigative priorities must recognise, prioritise and more effectively tackle violence against women and girls;’

Other Amendments Tabled

Tabled Date	Amendment Text
20/11/2025	Leave out all after ‘risk posed;’ and insert: ‘recognises the hard work of the PSNI and wider justice system to protect children and tackle violence against women and girls, despite a decade of severe underfunding of the Department of Justice; further notes that the failings identified in the report from the office of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland predate the most recent period of suspension of the Executive, during which the Chief Constable halted recruitment; welcomes that, while the Executive has so far failed to allocate sufficient funding for police recruitment, it has committed to prioritising funding for Year 1 of the PSNI Business Recovery Plan in the December monitoring round and future years in the upcoming multi-year budget; and calls on the Minister of Justice to set out what wider steps she is taking to support recruitment and retention, including measures to ensure that the PSNI better reflects the society it serves.’
21/11/2025	Leave out all after ‘ensure that the PSNI’ and insert: ‘is properly resourced to protect the society it serves, in light of the PSNI workforce Recovery Plan, as outlined by the Chief Constable.’

Tabled Date

Amendment Text

20/11/2025

Leave out all after ‘risk posed;’ and insert: ‘recognises the hard work of the PSNI and wider justice system to protect children and tackle violence against women and girls, despite a decade of severe underfunding of the Department of Justice; further notes that the failings identified in the report from the office of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland predate the most recent period of suspension of the Executive, during which the Chief Constable halted recruitment; welcomes that, while the Executive has so far failed to allocate sufficient funding for police recruitment, it has committed to prioritising funding for Year 1 of the PSNI Business Recovery Plan in the December monitoring round and future years in the upcoming multi-year budget; and calls on the Minister of Justice to set out what wider steps she is taking to support recruitment and retention, including measures to ensure that the PSNI better reflects the society it serves.’

21/11/2025

Leave out all after ‘ensure that the PSNI’ and insert: ‘is properly resourced to protect the society it serves, in light of the PSNI workforce Recovery Plan, as outlined by the Chief Constable.’

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