Ex-Sinn Féin mayor for police board

A former Sinn Féin mayor of Derry is to join the party’s first three Assembly representatives on the Northern Ireland Policing Board.

Gearoid O hEara was one of the independent members of the board appointed today by Northern Secretary Peter Hain.

Former Progressive Unionist Party deputy leader David Rose will replace East Belfast Assembly member Dawn Purvis as the loyalist representative on the 19-member board which holds senior police officers to account for their decisions and officers’ actions.

And while the chair and vice chair of the previous board, Desmond Rea and Barry Gilligan, will be returning to the board along with former Ireland rugby international Trevor Ringland, former nationalist SDLP Assembly member Joe Byrne and Pauline McCabe will not be taking seats.

Sinn Féin has already announced former Belfast Lord Mayor Alex Maskey and fellow Assembly members Martina Anderson and Daithi McKay will be their first ever political representatives on the board.

The move follows the party’s historic decision in January to get involved in policing structures in the North and work with Hugh Orde’s Police Service of Northern Ireland.

The party’s decision paved the way for the restoration of devolved government.

The board is made up of 10 political representatives and nine independent members.

The DUP has appointed Lagan Valley MP Jeffrey Donaldson, Upper Bann MP David Simpson, West Tyrone MLA Tom Buchanan and North Down MLA Peter Weir as its political nominees.

Ulster Unionist MLAs Basil McCrea and Leslie Cree and SDLP Assembly member Dolores Kelly have also been appointed.

Mr Hain said the fact that the membership of the new board would for the first time include all representatives of the community was another significant step forward.

“Effective policing has to be informed by the different voices within our communities,” the Northern Secretary said.

“The wide variety of background and experience represented by the political and independent members on this new board will ensure that all interests are taken into account.

“The Northern Ireland Policing Board has been one of the outstanding success stories of the Belfast Agreement. I would like to pay tribute to all the former members of the board for the significant contribution they have made to policing in Northern Ireland and their considerable courage and personal commitment to the Board and its work.

“I have every confidence that the newly reconstituted board will continue to take this good work forward.”

Among the other independent members returning to the board are health worker Rosaleen Moore, lecturer Brian Rea and former Commission for Racial Equality member Suneil Sharma will also return.

Mary McKee, a director of the north Belfast-based regeneration charity Groundwork Northern Ireland will also serve on the board.

Sinn Féin Policing Board member Daithi McKay pledged that the party's involvement would ensure full accountability of the force.

The North Antrim MLA said: “It is not the job of Sinn Féin members on the Policing Board to act as cheerleaders for the PSNI or rubber-stamp PSNI policy and actions.

“Sinn Féin will provide the voice for communities who have in the past experienced only bad policing.

“We want to play a constructive role on the Board but we will not shy away from challenging or criticising or questioning policing decisions and policy when the need arises.

“Sinn Féin will ask the awkward questions and demand that we get straight answers.”