Policing

Northern Ireland's police watchdog has insisted there is "no significant operational impact" on its work as a result of currently having no ombudsman nor chief executive. Police ombudsman Marie Anderson is currently on extended absence due to illness, with her responsibilities delegated to the offic

The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal in an attempted murder case concerning the admission of mobile phone traffic and location data into evidence by the Special Criminal Court. Delivering judgment for the Supreme Court, Mr Justice Maurice Collins opined: “Making all due allowance for the

A man who was wrongfully arrested and detained in the US based on facial recognition technology (FRT) has called on Helen McEntee not to introduce the technology into Irish policing. Robert Williams spoke at an event hosted by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) last week in Dublin, alongsi

A PSNI report on the use of covert surveillance against journalists and lawyers has not provided adequate reassurances, the Northern Ireland Policing Board has said. The 60-page report, published yesterday, states firmly: "The central public concern has been that there was widespread, and unjustifie

London lawyer Angus McCullough KC has been appointed by the PSNI to conduct an independent review of the force's alleged use of surveillance against journalists, lawyers and NGOs. The PSNI's chief constable, Jon Boutcher, this week denied that documents published in the course of proceedings before

Frontline Gardaí have begun using bodyworn cameras following the enactment of the Gardaí Síochána (Recording Devices) Act 2023. Taoiseach Simon Harris; minister for justice, Helen McEntee; and Garda Commissioner, Drew Harris attended Store Street Garda station in Dublin&r

The launch of Ireland's new motor insurance database will allow gardaí to establish within seconds whether a vehicle is insured or not, ministers have announced. Justice minister Helen McEntee and junior minister Neale Richmond today attended the formal launch of the new Irish Motor Insurance

The PSNI is facing a £750,000 fine over the data breach which saw the personal information of all serving police officers and staff published online. Announcing its provisional decision yesterday, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) said that, had the PSNI not been a public body, the f

Ireland's new independent examiner of security legislation will not be equipped to challenge a "culture of secrecy and resistance to scrutiny", a former member of the Commission on the Future of Policing has said. Professor Donncha O'Connell told a conference at Maynooth University that legislation

Racist hate crimes and incidents reported to the PSNI reached a record high in the 12 months to the end of March 2024, according to new figures. There were 1,353 racist incidents and 839 racist crimes recorded by police in the 12-month period, the highest since records began in 2004/05, according to

The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) is to produce a report on the extent of its surveillance of legal professionals and journalists by June. Belfast lawyer Niall Murphy, partner at KRW LAW LLP, has accused the force of acting like "East German secret police in the early 1980s" following re

Proposals to allow gardaí to use facial recognition technology do not currently include enough safeguards to protect fundamental rights, the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has warned. The rights body has today set out its concerns with the proposed general scheme of the Garda S&ia

A prominent Belfast solicitor has raised concerns about the extent of PSNI surveillance of lawyers and journalists following revelations in the Investigatory Powers Tribunal today. The tribunal today began hearing a case brought by Northern Ireland journalists Trevor Birney and Barry McCaffrey to es

Hate crimes and incidents reported to An Garda Síochána rose by 12 per cent last year, according to new figures.

The UK's Investigatory Powers Tribunal (IPT) is today hearing a complaint from two Northern Ireland journalists who believe they were subject to police surveillance.