Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent assessment she has made of the (a) adequacy and (b) effectiveness of the number of police officers in Northern Ireland.

Policing in Northern Ireland, and therefore police funding and numbers, are devolved matters. The prioritisation of police resourcing is the responsibility of the Department of Justice, working with the wider Executive. How the PSNI allocate their funding is an operational matter for the Chief Constable, in consultation with the NI Policing Board.

Recognising the unique security situation in Northern Ireland, the UK Government makes additional contributions to PSNI through Additional Security Funding. The UK Government contribution this financial year 22/23 is £32 million; demonstrating the UK Government’s commitment to security in Northern Ireland.