Security News > 2023 > September > Northern Ireland's top cop quits after security breach, disciplinary controversy

Northern Ireland's police chief, Simon Byrne, resigned last night after an emergency meeting of the Policing Board amid discontent in the rank and file over a data breach that exposed serving officers' info, as well as news he was considering appealing a court ruling linked to the Troubles.

An armed police officer stands guard at a cordon point while army ammunition technical officers examine a suspected bomb in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

"The Police Service Northern Ireland Chief Constable said in a statement:"The last few days have been very difficult for all concerned.

Byrne's resignation comes after the large-scale security data breach on August 8, an own goal where the PSNI mistakenly published spreadsheet data with the details of every single serving Northern Ireland police officer following a routine Freedom of Information request on the www.

According to a PSNI statement at the time, the two officers approached a person to talk to him about "a breach of the Health Protection Regulations. The situation quickly escalated and a man was arrested for disorderly behaviour and resisting arrest. He was taken to Musgrave Street Police Station and was released at 4.04 pm. In the course of the incident a police officer sustained a minor injury to his face."

Liam Kelly, chair of the Police Federation for Northern Ireland, said of Byrne's resignation that the Chief Constable's position had become "Questionable and then untenable."

News URL

https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2023/09/05/northern_irish_police_chief_quits/