PSNI Chief Constable Jon Boutcher called for a review of recruitment policies during a media briefing at a cross-border conference on organised crime on Monday. He described current Catholic officer numbers as below target levels.

PSNI figures from last month indicate Catholic applicants for student officer roles reached the lowest rate in more than ten years. Over 4,000 applied in the latest drive, with 65.6 percent identifying as Protestant, 26.7 percent as Catholic and 7.7 percent undetermined.

Boutcher suggested marking the PSNI's 25th anniversary with discussions on hiring approaches. The measure requiring equal Catholic and Protestant recruits ran from 2001 to 2011 under post-conflict reforms to reflect Northern Ireland's community balance.

Sinn Fein stated last week that ending the policy reduced Catholic participation in policing. Boutcher urged community leaders, politicians, councillors, clergy, teachers and police sports groups to promote service careers and end discouragement efforts.

He noted support from some alongside interference, such as a recent PSNI pullout from a school recruitment event over a bomb threat. Dissident republicans also targeted schools Boutcher intended to visit.

Boutcher stressed addressing threats from dissidents and social barriers, including instances where nationalist applicants faced rejection by peers or needed to relocate.