Durkan expresses confidence in PSNI chief

SDLP leader Mr Mark Durkan has expressed his confidence that Northern Ireland's new chief constable was fully committed to implementing…

SDLP leader Mr Mark Durkan has expressed his confidence that Northern Ireland's new chief constable was fully committed to implementing police reforms.

Mr Durkan, the first party leader to meet Mr Hugh Orde since he took up his post last week, said the chief constable was aware of the scale of task in front of him.

"This was an extremely positive meeting. The new chief constable is a very forthright, straightforward person," he said.

Last week the chief constable vowed to carry out a major crackdown on paramilitary chiefs and said he urgently needed more officers to deal with street violence. He also pledged to implement the Patten reforms.

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The meeting took place as Mr Tom Constanine, the American called in by the Government to assess progress on the huge changes, warned that rising crime and sectarian street violence could wreck the programme of reform.

In his fifth report since being appointed Oversight Commissioner for the Patten plan to overhaul the police, Mr Constantine also expressed concern at delays in producing a plan for integrating Special Branch with CID.

But Mr Durkan said the report was a vindication of the SDLP's position on reform and its decision to join the Policing Board.