To ask the Minister of Justice whether she has a role to encourage individuals from a Catholic community background to join the PSNI.

It is incumbent upon me, as upon all elected representatives, to encourage people from all walks of life, including but not limited to religious background, to consider a career in policing in order to ensure that the Police Service of Northern Ireland is representative of the population which it serves.

My role as Minister is to provide a legislative framework with appropriate measures in place to ensure accountability in the recruitment process in addition to the normal oversight arrangements operated by the Policing Board. There is currently provision for targeting advertising to reach under-represented groups and the recruitment process is open to all those who meet the minimum criteria regardless of their religious background.