PSNI's new training college: Can they actually afford to build facility on 54-acre Kinnegar army base outside Belfast they're spending £5m to buy?

That’s the question being asked by one DUP MLA, who fears the cash-strapped police could wind up land-banking a huge property they’re buying on a scenic shore of Belfast Lough – whether they want to or not.

And he also worries that if the force doesn’t have deep enough pockets to start construction in the next few years, the 54-acre site could be sold off to private developers.

The PSNI is in the final stages of getting hold of Kinnegar Barracks, located in Holywood a few minutes drive east of Belfast.

It’s to be a new training centre, replacing the police’s ageing facilities at Garnerville in the capital city.

But while the force has approved £4.9m to buy the site, it hasn't sorted out the substantial amount of money it would need to actually build its new college.

As the Chief Constable regularly complains that severe funding shortages are making it hard to carry out everyday policing, North Down MLA Peter Martin is now concerned that the training facility may never see the light of day.

Suggesting construction would set the PSNI back tens of millions of pounds, he wants to know where the cash-strapped force expects to find the sum.

If they can’t afford the price, he fears, the police would wind up sitting on prime seafront property with nothing being built – effectively land-banking it.

And as there were always a lot of private sector companies sniffing around Kinnegar, Mr Martin thinks it could easily wind up being sold off on the open market in a few years.

“Clearly my concern is if the PSNI were to purchase the site, would it just sit there or do they have both the plans and the capital behind them to transform the site?” he asks.

"There is no point them acquiring the land without the strategic vision of what they will use it for and also the capital to achieve it.”

Mr Martin brought the issue to Justice Minister Naomi Long this week. She refused to go into any detail about funding for the college, stating: “The management of the PSNI estate, including acquisitions, is entirely an operational matter for the Chief Constable”.

Says Mr Martin: “It is disappointing that the Justice Minister could not give me an answer.

“My question was to see if PSNI has not only the capital funding to purchase the barracks but also the deep pockets to actually develop it.”

A police spokeswoman said the full construction cost won’t be known until a business case for building the college is approved.

She added: “The site is proposed as a key enabler in wider Belfast rationalisation, which includes provision for future delivery of a new police college and training facility.”

Kinnegar housed large numbers of troops and civilian staff during the Troubles, but has been out of use for years – last seeing action when it was transformed into an emergency mortuary for Covid victims.

As the News Letter exclusively revealed this month, the police are inking a deal to buy it from the Ministry of Defence. That came as relief to nearby residents, who dreaded the impact on traffic if it was sold for housing.