PSNI officers advised to 'remain vigilant' as NI terror threat reduced from severe to substantial

Police Federation chair Liam Kelly said that while the revised assessment is welcome, the threat to police officers’ safety remains high and they can’t afford to “relax their guard”.

The latest assessment by MI5 means the prospect of a terrorist attack moves from “highly likely” to “a strong possibility”.

Mr Kelly said: “This revised assessment is welcome news, but it doesn’t mean our officers can relax their guard. We still have terrorists who want to murder officers and, although there have been significant inroads made against them, they remain a danger to our officers.

“We are moving in the right direction. That said, Northern Ireland is a long way from achieving a moderate or low threat level."

Mr Kelly added: "Officers must remain vigilant and exercise great care both on and off duty. They continue to be identified and targeted and only by exercising prudent security precautions, coupled with counter-terrorism actions, will they be prevented from causing heartache and misery.

“There will be no relaxation in the work to degrade terrorist and organised crime gangs.”

DUP policing board member Trevor Clarke said the lowering of the threat level in Northern Ireland is “testament to the efforts of the PSNI and MI5 in keeping the public safe,” but warned against complacency.

The South Antrim MLA said: “We have been here before. The callous attack on DCI John Caldwell [in February 2023] demonstrates the residual threat of dissident republicans as well as the risks endured day and daily by our dedicated police officers.

This is not the time to stand still or take a step back in the fight against terrorism in Northern Ireland. Those efforts must continue.

"The chief constable has warned that the continuing perilous state of the PSNI’s finances will have a detrimental impact on the service’s ability to support national security operations going forward and such a scenario must not be tolerated”.

Mike Nesbitt has also welcomed the revised assessment.

"As Desmond Tutu said, the price of freedom is eternal vigilance and I am grateful to the security services for their tireless work to keep the people of Northern Ireland safe,” the Ulster Unionist MLA said.

Mr Nesbitt, who also sits on the policing board, added: "I feel the appropriate reaction to the lowering of the threat level is ‘good, but …,’ the ‘but’ being the recognition that there are still those who wish to use extreme violence to disrupt society and take life. Principally, I refer to so-called dissident republicans.”

Mr Nesbitt added: "There is also the question of the continuing presence of criminal gangs whose origins lie in loyalist paramilitary organisations. Thirty years on from the loyalist ceasefires, I see no justification for their continued existence and call on self-respecting loyalists to distance themselves from the criminals in their community.

“A restored Assembly represents an opportunity to finally address the legacy of the long period of our Troubles and free individuals, families and communities from the coercive control that is still being exerted today, creating new victims in 2024."