PSNI budget down by nearly a quarter in a decade

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has seen its budget fall by £200m in real terms over the past decade, according to the Audit Office.

The PSNI met the challenge by primarily reducing personnel, but it needs to be “more strategic”.

The Audit Office report also states that staff absences rose to a record high of 14 days a year on average.

It was not surprising absenteeism had increased as reduced officer numbers "put a strain" on the PSNI, it adds.

The PSNI’s budget drop from £947m to £744m was more severe than cuts to other UK police services, notes the report.

However, the PSNI still remains one of the most expensive to run in the UK, relative to the size of the Northern Ireland population.

Changing staff numbers

A year ago, officer numbers stood at 6,660, more than 500 fewer than at the start of the decade.

The report noted the PSNI turned to axing officers and civilian staff when other budget management measures failed to deliver.

Auditor General Kieran Donnelly said despite the funding cut, confidence in the PSNI remained “stable".

However he added: “It is essential the PSNI manages its budget in a long-term strategic way to address the issues created as a result of top-slicing budgets.”

Among the immediate issues is a £27m backlog of building maintenance work.

Since last year, officer numbers have since risen by about 300 and the ambition is to grow to 7,500.

Deputy Chief Constable Mark Hamilton said: “A series of business cases have been prepared to increase headcount, improve the estate and better harness new digital capability.

“In the interim, the chief constable has radically increased the number of neighbourhood officers.

“Our new standstill budget settlement (for 2020-21) will be a test of lessons learned as we wrestle with the demands of a severe terrorist threat and recovery post Covid-19.”

Doug Garrett, chairman of the Northern Ireland Policing Board, said the report recognised the range of challenges faced by the PSNI in making substantial reductions and the unique issues faced in managing budgets.

"In supporting future transformation of the service, the board has agreed a new chief operating officer position for the PSNI to drive forward strategic change, business modernisation and bring focus to achieving value for money in resource utilisation," he added.

Chair of the Police Federation Mark Lindsay said: "Where there are fewer officers and hundreds of millions of pounds less to maintain the service, something had to give."

He added: "Doing more with less comes at a heavy price. For many officers, excessive work patterns and long shifts with poorly structured leave and rest days played havoc with their lives and the lives of their families."