An LGBT+ support group in Northern Ireland has strongly criticised a decision by the PSNI to ban police officers from taking part in the annual pride march in Belfast while in uniform.
PSNI officers were applauded when they first paraded in uniform alongside gardaí at the event in 2017.
But the policy has now been reversed and officers who wish to attend this year's pride march in Belfast on 29 July have been told they cannot wear their uniform.
PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Bobby Singleton said he was aware "this decision will come as a disappointment to some".
Critics had claimed the attendance of officers in uniform was an official endorsement of gay rights campaign issues.
But the PSNI insists the theme of this year's parade, 'Stand Up For Your Trans', had nothing to do with the decision.
In a statement, Mr Singleton said: "As a police service, we have had to carefully consider this request from our LGBT+ Network on its merits, the stated purposes and circumstances surrounding the parade and our statutory obligations to act with fairness, integrity and impartiality, whilst upholding fundamental human rights and according equal respect to all individuals, their traditions and beliefs."
He added that pride events remained "an important element of our outreach and engagement".
The Rainbow Project, which supports LGBT+ people and their families, has strongly criticised the move.
"We are seeking urgent clarification on the rationale and consequences of this decision," it said in a post on Twitter.
"At a time when recorded crime against LBGTQIA+ people is at its highest ever level, the PSNI leadership should be working to improve relations with LGBTQIA+ people, not undermine them."
The PSNI's LGBT+ staff support network has said it is "bitterly disappointed", and that partcipation in the parade had been "incredibly empowering" for their officers and staff.
In a statement, the group claimed the decision also prevents members from participating in pride wearing t-shirts identifying themselves as police officers.
"Being visible as a public service in pride parades inspired hundreds of LGBT+ people to take up policing as a career, it let our communities know we were part of them and that we stood with them against hate crime and discrimination," the statement added.
PSNI sources have said the issue was revisited this year because other staff associations had made requests to wear uniforms at other external events, but it is not clear what those events are.
An Alliance Party Assembly member who sits on the Northern Ireland Policing Board has criticised the policy change.
Nuala McAllister was Lord Mayor of Belfast in 2017 when the PSNI and gardaí officers marched in uniform in the parade for the first time.
"I remember back in 2017 when the PSNI first marched, and the cheers and applause from the crowd. It was an incredible feeling," she said.
"A backward step today."
An SDLP councillor in Belfast has written to PSNI Chief Constable Simon Byrne seeking an urgent meeting with him and "leaders within the LGBT+ community".
In a post on Twitter, Séamus de Faoite said: "There has been significant damage to LGBT+ community confidence in policing caused by their decision to withdraw from Belfast Pride."
But a councillor for the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) in Belfast, Timothy Gaston welcomed the decision, saying the PSNI had "no business" taking part in the parade.
