RUC, Changes to be announced tomorrow
Representatives of the RUC and senior civil servants have begun discussions in Belfast this afternoon on a redundancy package expected to cost several million pounds. It follows a recommendation in the Patten report that the size of the force should be almost halved. The British government's plans for the RUC, believed to include a name change, are due to be revealed by the Northern Secretary tomorrow.
The report, last September, on the future of the RUC by Chris Patten, who is now a European Commissioner, made 175 recommendations. It proposed that the force should be reduced from 13,500 to 7,500 members. Tomorrow in the House of Commons, Peter Mandelson is expected to announce the British government's intentions for policing.
Reports suggest that the force is to be renamed the Police Service for Northern Ireland, and there could be changes to the oath of allegiance and the cap badge. This is intended to make the new service more attractive to Catholics, who form less than 10% of the current body. The Sinn Féin President, Gerry Adams wants all the Patten proposals to be implemented. However, the DUP claimed that the Northern Secretary was presiding over the destruction of the RUC.
This afternoon senior officials from the Northern Ireland Office met the Police Federation and other RUC staff associations to discuss the implications of the Patten report and possible voluntary redundancies. Afterwards representatives said that they were not heartened by what they had heard about the British government's plans, but would be continuing discussions in private.
The Northern Ireland Office confirmed that the meeting had taken place to begin, what it said were, discussions on the terms available in respect of the voluntary early severance for officers that might be needed as a result of decisions to be taken on the Patten Report. Peter Mandelson said that he was glad they had been able to get the discussions underway. He said that he knew there was much concern among police officers about what the future might hold. The discussions, he said, would help all sides to move towards arrangements which addressed those concerns with sympathy and generosity.
