Jon Boutcher named as new PSNI Chief Constable
Following a series of crises for policing in Northern Ireland, Jon Boutcher now finds himself with the unenviable task of restoring confidence as he assumes the role of Chief Constable of the PSNI.
Boutcher had already been serving as Interim Chief Constable following the resignation of his predecessor, Simon Byrne, becoming the PSNI’s sixth Chief Constable and fourth English officer to land the post. The 58-year-old has over 35 years’ experience in policing, and was an unsuccessful applicant to the role of Chief Constable in 2019.
He had also previously applied to lead the Metropolitan Police after the resignation of Cressida Dick in 2022 but he was unsuccessful in that process.
His most senior role to date was Chief Constable of Bedfordshire Police. A force with less than 20 per cent of officers and budget of the PSNI. He held the role from 2015 to 2019.
Boutcher also notably led the Operation Kenova team, which conducted a series of independent historical investigations which cast doubt upon which competing British intelligence cohort ran the agent known as Stakeknife.
In 2005, he was the lead detective in the investigation into the 7/7 bombings which killed 52 people on London’s transport system.
Boutcher faces an uphill task to restore confidence to a policing organisation which is facing a spending gap of £52 million, in response to which he has pledged that he will be “lobbying at every level to make sure the PSNI gets the funding it deserves”.
Currently, the PSNI has around 7,000 officers and a budget of £800 million, however the prospect of reducing neighbourhood policing numbers and detectives looms for Boutcher as he takes this new office. Unless the money can be found, which looks unlikely with no Stormont return in the near future, then there will be an inevitable need to shrink the size of the PSNI.
At first glance, this may not even be an unsatisfactory prospect for many members of the public. Public confidence in the PSNI has been beset by significant data breaches, botched investigations into officer conduct, pandemic restriction implementation, and the significant public outcry at how the death of Belfast teenager Noah Donohoe, officially classified as an accident, was investigated.
Boutcher was selected over the only other applicant for the role, Assistant Chief Constable Bobby Singleton. In normal circumstances, when a devolved government is in place in Northern Ireland, the Policing Board’s selection would be sent to the devolved Justice Minister for final approval.
With no Minister of Justice in place due to the ongoing power sharing impasse, Heaton-Harris assumed responsibility for signing off on the appointment. He had no influence on the choice but had to be “satisfied that the process was fair and done in accordance with rules and guidelines”.
Series of crises
Boutcher takes over an organisation which has come under intense scrutiny for a number of failings, with both public confidence and staff morale low.
Under the ill-fated leadership of his predecessor Simon Byrne, the PSNI was responsible for a number of data breaches, including one which compromised more than 10,000 of the PSNI’s staff in an error made during a response to a freedom of information request.
In December 2020, Byrne issued an apology over the PSNI’s “unfair and discriminatory” actions in Derry on 6 June 2020, after more than 70 fines were issued for breaches of lockdown rules over a Black Lives Matter protest. This was in contrast with a Protect our Veterans rally in Belfast the following week in which no fixed penalty notices were issued.
Byrne also caused controversy six months into his leadership when he posed for a Christmas Day photo in front of the PSNI station in Crossmaglen with police officers holding assault rifles. He faced criticism for being “insensitive to the local community” and later issued an apology.
Byrne was further thwarted by a ruling in August 2022 in which a High Court found that two PSNI officers had been “unlawfully disciplined” following an arrest made on suspicion of disorderly behaviour at a commemoration in February 2021 of the February 1992 Sean Graham bookmakers attack. The man arrested was later released without charge.
The court stated that disciplinary action had been undertaken to allay any threat of Sinn Féin withdrawing its support for the PSNI. Byrne fended off calls to resign initially and publicly, but later privately resigned.
Political reaction
Boutcher’s appointment has been broadly welcomed by Northern Ireland’s political parties:
Michelle O’Neill MLA, Sinn Féin, posting on X: “Wishing Jon Boutcher well on his appointment as new Chief Constable. Huge job of work ahead to rebuild trust and confidence in the police with public and PSNI officers.”
Jeffrey Donaldson MP, DUP: “Now that there is much-needed continuity within the PSNI senior command, it is essential that we see a renewed commitment on the part of the Government to provide policing with the additional resource it needs to tackle the serious challenges facing our communities head on.”
John Blair MLA, Alliance Party: “I congratulate John Boutcher on his appointment to Chief Constable and wish him every success in the position. There is no doubt it is a challenging role but one I hope he is able to make a success of. Amongst the most pressing issues facing the PSNI are an extremely stretched budget and workforce, as well as increasing community confidence again following a series of high profile incidents.”
In a statement, Boutcher, who will receive an annual salary of £220,000, said: “This position carries great responsibility and is a huge privilege. I look forward to leading the dedicated officers of this exceptional organisation.
“There is much to do and I am fully committed to delivering an outstanding policing service to address the issues which matter most to our communities. The officers and staff of the police service do an extraordinary job and will have my full support.”
