Please provide details of the hours worked by the PSNI Part-Time Reserve during the Covid-19 period, broken down by District, and for comparison please provide details of the hours worked by the PSNI Part-Time Reserve, per District, for the same period last year (2019).
Part-Time Reserve officers are an important resource within the Police Service Northern Ireland. Officers were used extensively throughout the pandemic on a District by District basis. Some were unable to work during the pandemic due to their age, shielding, and underlying health conditions. The table overleaf shows an increase of 64% from March – June 2020 in comparison to the same period in 2019.
A decision was taken on 13 May to limit the use of Part-Time Reserve officers and revert to the pre-covid budget allocation (i.e.144 hours averaged over 12 months). This was deemed necessary to manage resources within the budgetary allocation for 2020-21.
Deployment of Part-Time Reserve officers is currently being considered as part of the wider Local Policing Review, in order to enhance neighbourhood policing.
Mike Nesbitt - UUP