PSNI launches plan to address concerns from ethnic minority communities

Rebecca Black (PA)

The Police Service of Northern Ireland has launched a plan aimed at addressing concerns within ethnic minority communities.

Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said he wants to ensure everyone in the region feels safe, supported and respected as he launched the PSNI’s Race and Ethnicity Action Plan.

It outlines goals and steps to eradicate racial and ethnic disparities in policing, and include enhanced training programmes, oversight mechanisms, community engagement and policy reforms.

The plan has been in development since 2024 following disorder associated with anti-immigration protests in Belfast as well as cities across the UK following the killing of three children in Southport.

Businesses belonging those from minority communities were destroyed in the Donegall Road area during the disorder.

Similar tension was also seen earlier in 2025 in Ballymena, Co Antrim.

The PSNI’s Race and Ethnicity Action Plan says that those events underline the need for policing to be visibly anti-racist and make it clear there is no place for hatred and discrimination in Northern Ireland

It includes five commitments to being an anti-racist police service, ensuring people from an ethnic minority background feel safe, valued by and engaged in policing and that police respect and are trusted by people from ethnic minority communities.

Police have also committed to “excellence in diversity, equality, representation and inclusivity”.

The plan notes that according to the most recent census, 8.1% of the region’s population belongs to ethnic minority communities, yet just 0.66% of PSNI officers and 0.75% of staff do.

In his foreword to the report, Mr Boutcher acknowledged public confidence in police, “especially among these communities has been impacted by historical injustices, disparities in policing outcomes and a perception of bias within the system”.

“It is our responsibility to not only recognise these concerns, but to actively address them,” he said.

Speaking at the launch event on Thursday evening, Mr Boutcher said the plan represents a commitment to ethnic minority communities ensuring that everyone in Northern Ireland feels safe, supported and respected.

“We recognise the importance of listening to all communities and working together to build a policing service that truly reflects the diversity of the society we serve,” he said.

“Recent events have demonstrated the need for decisive action and clear leadership to stamp out racism which clearly exists in communities in Northern Ireland.

“We are confident this action plan will drive the work of the police service and help us to work more effectively with ethnic minority communities and partners.

“The Race and Ethnicity Action Plan aligns with PSNI’s broader equality, diversity and inclusivity and our work through our Policing with the Community vision, ensuring that tangible actions to address race and ethnicity are embedded across all areas of policing.

“PSNI is committed to regular updates on the progress of the plan and to continuing open dialogue with ethnic minority communities to ensure it meets their needs.”

Justice Minister Naomi Long welcomed the plan and said no one should feel afraid to leave their home or go to work.

She said barriers to hiring people from ethnic minorities to the PSNI should be removed and said she would pass new hate crime laws by the end of her mandate.

“The disorder we have seen in on our streets in recent weeks and months, targeting minority ethnic communities, is abhorrent and underlines the importance of continuing to support diversity,” she said in a video message.

“It’s vital that everyone in this society feels safe and valued. Now is the time to reflect on what’s happened, to stand with those communities who have been intimidated and abused, and to continue to speak out against those who seek to destroy our community cohesion.”

Chairman of the Northern Ireland Policing Board Mukesh Sharma welcomed the publication of the plan.

“This action plan clearly sets out PSNI’s commitment to tackling racist hate crime in all its forms,” he said.

“There is much work to do in tackling hate crime. Its eradication requires a wider societal response in parallel with a policing one and publication of this action plan is an important step.

“The board will monitor and oversee progress in its delivery with the chief constable.”

Amnesty International’s Northern Ireland director Patrick Corrigan said that “for too long” the PSNI had “over-policed and under-protected” minority ethnic communities in the region.

“Race hate crime is at a record high, yet many victims still feel unable to report attacks – a stark reflection of mistrust in policing,” he said.

“From the heavy-handed response to Black Lives Matter protests to repeated failures to respond effectively to racist violence, the PSNI has eroded the confidence of many minoritised communities.

“The publication of this five-year plan is, therefore, a welcome and necessary step – a public commitment by the PSNI to becoming an anti-racist police force.

“Amnesty International will work alongside local communities to monitor progress and hold the police to account. In the end, the success of this plan won’t be measured by words on paper, but by whether communities see real change in how they are policed and protected.”

 Assistant Chief Officer Clare Duffield, Chief Constable Jon Boutcher, Northern Ireland Policing Board Chair Mukesh Sharma, Deputy Assistant Commissioner for the Metropolitan Police and national lead for the Police Race Action Plan, Alison Heydari, Detective Chief Superintendent Zoe McKee, and community worker Preeti Yellamaty at the launch of the PSNI's Race and Ethnicity Action Plan, at Ulster University's Belfast campus.