Police Ombudsman reports fail to recognise 'volatile policing context' of Northern Ireland Troubles: DUP MP

Following a meeting with ombudsman Marie Anderson on Monday, the DUP MP for East Londonderry said “a long line” of PONI reports have not accurately reflected the “unprecedented, volatile and resource-intensive policing context” in which terrorist atrocities were taking place.

Mr Campbell said: “Judging the actions of the RUC against contemporary standards ignores the substantial operational challenges facing officers.

"It ignores the life and death reality that extremely difficult decisions to prioritise time and resources had to be made on a daily and hourly basis to try and protect life and serve our entire community.

"Regrettably, this meant mistakes were made, opportunities were missed and not every line of inquiry could be exhausted. This happens in every walk of life. However, that is in no way comparable with colluding with terrorists.

"Indeed, it is wrong for the ombudsman to make sweeping claims of ‘collusive behaviours’ despite no such offence being defined in law, despite not a single prosecution or misconduct file being brought forward and despite seemingly no evidence of an improper motive on the part of officers”.

Mr Campbell said he left the ombudsman in no doubt that confidence in the ombudsman’s office, particularly within the unionist community, has “been severely eroded”.

In response, a PONI spokesman said the ombudsman “strongly refutes the suggestion that her historical reports do not consider the context within which policing operated during the Troubles”.

The spokesman said: "Mrs Anderson is acutely aware of the extremely difficult circumstances which police officers faced during the Troubles - not only in terms of the serious threat to their safety, but also in terms of the sheer number of incidents, and the challenges of conducting investigations in a conflict situation.

“It is also simply wrong to suggest that when conducting historical investigations, the Police Ombudsman judges the actions of the RUC against modern standards. The Police Ombudsman is clear that police conduct is considered in relation to the laws and standards which were applicable at the time.”

The PONI statement adds: “Mrs Anderson outlines in considerable detail in her public statements the rationale for her conclusions, including those occasions on which she found evidence of collusive behaviours.

“It would not be appropriate for the Police Ombudsman to comment on ongoing litigation which has been initiated by the NI Retired Police Officers Association.”