APPENDIX 1
Memorandum submitted by the Office of
the Oversight Commissioner
Thank you for your letter of 10 February 2004,
in which you requested information on the functions of the Office
of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland. As you may know,
the Oversight Commissioner has maintained a focussed remit on
evaluating the changes to the policing structures of Northern
Ireland, as recommended by the Independent Commission on Policing
for Northern Ireland.
Although the Office of the Police Ombudsman
predates the release of the Independent Commission's report, the
Commission nonetheless made several recommendations which impacted
on the Police Ombudsman. You will find our comments in that regard
in our official reports, particularly reports numbers 4 through
9, and primarily in the chapters on "Accountability"
and "Management and Personnel."
Briefly, our publicly reported assessment of
the Office of the Police Ombudsman is that she and her office
are meeting the Independent Commission's objectives. The only
other relevant comment I can add is that the Ombudsman and members
of her staff have always demonstrated a high level of professionalism,
courtesy and cooperation in any dealings with myself and my evaluation
team.
In closing I would also note that I have been
personally impressed by the Ombudsman's commitment to extending
knowledge and learning on law enforcement and civilian oversight.
This she has done through several professional sessions open to
the policing community ancLthe public, both locally and internationally.
26 February 2004
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