"POLICING THE past" is draining resources from the PSNI at a time when it is facing a £100 million (€131 million) shortfall over the next three years, the Chief Constable has warned the Policing Board.
Sir Hugh Orde said investigations of murders committed during the Troubles continued to hamper his drive to deliver effective policing for all communities in Northern Ireland.
Addressing a public session of the board, which holds the PSNI and Sir Hugh to account, he said: "In stark terms, the budget we designed and bid for to deal with policing the present day, to a substantial extent is being consumed by policing the past."
Dealing with the legacy of the Troubles is a regular theme for the Chief Constable, who feels his push for delivery of the new policing dispensation is hampered by the requirement to address the caseload from the conflict.
The requirements of a series of public inquiries, the investigation of more than 2,000 unsolved killings and the expected demand for more than 100 inquests were all hampering police efforts, he said.
"Demand is driven from the outside. It is outside my control." And he "confidently and regretfully" predicted that such demands would increase.
He accepted that the overall policing budget of £1.2 billion (€1.57 billion) was a substantial sum.
However referring to the £100,000 shortfall imposed under the British treasury's spending review, Sir Hugh said: "The challenge we face is minimising the impact of these cuts on frontline policing." He also rejected the drawing of comparisons between the policing demands faced by the PSNI and other "comparator" forces in Britain, and he cited the dissident republican threat as one distinguishing factor.