ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS FOR THE PERIOD 1 APRIL 2018 - 31 MARCH 2019 Northern Ireland Policing Board Annual Report and Accounts NORTHERN IRELAND POLICING BOARD ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS Northern Ireland Policing Board Annual Report and Accounts NORTHERN IRELAND POLICING BOARD ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS TOGETHER WITH THE ASSEMBLY ACCOUNTABILITY AND AUDIT REPORT FOR THE PERIOD 1 APRIL 2018 – 31 MARCH 2019. LAID BEFORE THE NORTHERN IRELAND ASSEMBLY IN ACCORDANCE WITH PARAGRAPH 16 OF SCHEDULE 1 TO THE POLICE (NI) ACT 2000 AS AMENDED BY THE POLICE (NI) ACT 2003 AND NORTHERN IRELAND ACT 1998 (DEVOLUTION OF POLICING AND JUSTICE FUNCTIONS) ORDER 2010 ON 5 JULY 2019. 1 Northern Ireland Policing Board Annual Report and Accounts © Northern Ireland Policing Board Copyright 2019 This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. To view this licence visit: www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/ . Any enquiries related to this publication should be sent to us at: Waterside Tower, 31 Clarendon Road, Belfast BT1 3BG or email: [email protected] This publication is also available on our website at: www.nipolicingboard.org.uk Any enquiries regarding this document/publication should be sent to the Communications Branch of the Policing Board at the above address. 2 Northern Ireland Policing Board Annual Report and Accounts CONTENTS 1 BOARD CHAIR’S REPORT 4 2 PERFORMANCE REPORT 6 - Overview - Chief Executive’s Introduction - Statement of the Purpose and Activities of the Organisation - Key Issues and Risks - Going Concern - Performance Summary - Performance Analysis 14 - Northern Ireland Policing Board (NIPB) Business Plan - Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) Policing Plan 3 ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT 169 - Corporate Governance Report - Remuneration and Staff Report - Assembly Accountability and Audit Report 4 NORTHERN IRELAND POLICING BOARD FINANCIAL 211 STATEMENTS 5 GLOSSARY 233 3 Northern Ireland Policing Board Annual Report and Accounts 1.BOARD CHAIR’S REPORT I am pleased to present this Annual Report for the period 1 April 2018- 31 March 2019. As Chair, I was delighted to have the Policing Board reconstituted by the Secretary of State and fully back in business. Having a democratically accountable police service and with it, effective oversight is important for community confidence. In addition to our accountability duties, the Board also has an important advocacy role to ensure the best possible policing service for all in our community and all Members share a collective desire to achieve this. Despite the best efforts of independent members to keep the structures functioning, the inability to exercise powers did have an impact on overall performance in terms of the Board’s work and in its scrutiny of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). Without legislative authority, a backlog had accumulated on a range of policing issues that had to be considered and prioritised by the newly established Board at its first formal meeting in January 2019. Top of the list was bringing permanency to a number of senior officer positions within the PSNI leadership team. The decision by the Chief Constable George Hamilton to retire at the end of June 2019 meant that a Chief Constable appointment had to be given prominence. I am pleased a robust appointment process was successfully progressed within a challenging timescale resulting in the announcement on 24 May 2019 of Simon Byrne QPM as the next Chief Constable of the PSNI. As a Board, we very much look forward to working with him on a number of challenges ahead including developing new approaches to local policing, budgetary and resourcing issues and potentially issues arising for policing here from the European Union (EU) Exit. 4 Northern Ireland Policing Board Annual Report and Accounts It is welcome that funding for an additional 308 officers has been confirmed in support of issues arising from this. However, as a Board we remain frustrated that the PSNI cannot carry forward strategic reserves and that they have to work off a one year budgetary settlement. This is an issue that needs resolved to deliver transformational change and a sustainable resourcing model to meet existing and future challenges. Crime in Northern Ireland remains at a relatively low level and this report contains an analysis of police performance against the Annual Policing Plan. That said, overall demands on policing are increasingly more complex in terms of investigation. The extensive consultation carried out this year on the delivery of policing services showed that people want visibility in service delivery. In developing the next Policing Plan there will need to be extensive discussion on what is realistically deliverable within the resources available. The use of resources is not assisted by the continuing threat against our officers and all attacks on our officers and indeed other blue light services are condemned in the strongest possible terms. The recent attempted murder of an officer once again shows the disregard these terrorists have for human life. They simply don’t care who in the community might be hurt in their actions. As a society we need to stand together to voice our desire for those who threaten our community or inflict harm to stop. I am encouraged by the commitment of political and civic leaders to this and to continue to build confidence in policing. As a Board, we are grateful to all those who contribute to building a safer community through the Policing and Community Safety Partnerships (PCSPs) network or who volunteer their time to ensure confidence in policing through the Custody Visiting and Independent Community Observer (ICO) Schemes. I also thank my colleagues on the Board, the Chief Executive and her staff for their professionalism and commitment. My final thanks go to George Hamilton for his leadership of the PSNI over the last five years as Chief Constable. As a Board, we wish him well in his retirement and record our thanks to all the PSNI officers and staff for their continued service. Anne Connolly OBE CHAIR 5 Northern Ireland Policing Board Annual Report and Accounts 2. PERFORMANCE REPORT Overview The purpose of the overview is to provide information to allow the activities of the NIPB to be understood. Chief Executive’s Introduction My Accounting Officer responsibilities require day to day compliance with the requirements set by the Department of Justice (DoJ) and the Department of Finance (DoF) in respect of organisational governance and the provisions set in the Management Statement and Financial Memorandum (MSFM). The Board was reconstituted on 1 December 2018 which allowed the full range of legislative duties to be recommenced. From the 1 April 2018 until 30 November 2018, in the absence of a legally constituted Policing Board, work progressed where possible within my delegations as Accounting Officer and those that were provided to me, the Board Chair and Vice Chair at the final meeting of the Board on 27 February 2017. The decisions taken under these delegations were informed to the Board at its first meeting on 24 January 2019. As required under governance arrangements, this report assesses organisational performance against the measures and targets set in the Board’s Corporate and Business Plan. During the reporting period, performance has been reviewed by my Senior Management with reports provided to the Board and the DoJ as appropriate. Within the executive processes of the Board, there is an embedded corporate approach to risk management. In addition, internal auditors examined control and governance arrangements and I report on this in detail in the Governance Statement. The reconstitution of the Board was a welcome development and allows the important oversight work of the Board to be exercised. The inability of the Board to discharge its full duties for the majority of the year has impacted on performance however a substantial programme of work has been progressed over the last few months of the financial year. I would like to thank the Board Members and staff for their work on behalf of the community. 6 Northern Ireland Policing Board Annual Report and Accounts Statement of the Purpose and Activities of the Organisation History The Northern Ireland Policing Board (NIPB) replaced the Police Authority for Northern Ireland and was established as an executive Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB) of the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) on 4 November 2001 by the Police (NI) Act 2000, as amended by the Police (NI) Act 2003. On 12 April 2010, justice functions in Northern Ireland were devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly (NIA) and the DoJ came into existence as a new Northern Ireland Department. From this date, the Board became an executive NDPB of the DoJ. In accordance with the Northern Ireland Act 1998 (Devolution of Policing and Justice Functions) Order 2010, the Annual Report and Accounts of the NIPB are laid in the NIA. The NIPB complies with the corporate governance and accountability framework arrangements (including Managing Public Money Northern Ireland) issued by the DoF and the DoJ. The NIPB’s Chief Executive, who is the Accounting Officer for the NIPB, reports directly to the Permanent Secretary as Principal Accounting Officer of the DoJ. Principal Activities The NIPB’s statutory duty is to ensure that the PSNI is effective and efficient and to hold the Chief Constable to account. Its primary responsibilities are: To consult with the community to obtain their views on policing and their co-operation