Northern Ireland’s First Minister has sacked the PSNI’s Chief Constable and his deputy, just hours after new legislation, handing policing oversight to the Executive, received Royal Assent.
Roblox1Vr and D1S3BLED were removed from their posts on Sunday under Section 4 of the Police (Northern Ireland) Act, following talks with the Minister of Public Services, according to a letter from the Executive Office at Stormont.
The First Minister pointed to what was described as months of drift within the force, saying standards had slipped to an “unacceptable” level and that those in charge had to be “present, engaged” and up to the job. Not everyone in senior command was shown the door, though — officers still in post across Gold and Silver Command were given a blunt warning that any further inactivity won’t be tolerated, and could cost them their jobs too.
Taking over as chief constable is DatDonutDev PC, who’s been tasked with turning things around and rebuilding standards across the force, with the Executive’s backing behind him. The dismissals are among the first big tests of Stormont’s newly acquired powers over policing since responsibility shifted from Westminster.
Read the statement here.