NI police recruitment set to begin

New recruits on the street by next spring

Recruiting for Northern Ireland's new police service is expected to start before the end of this week.

The move comes despite the refusal of Sinn Fein and the Social Democratic and Labour Party to sign up to the new policing arrangements.

Political sources have said the only alternative to starting recruiting would be to deploy soldiers on the streets.

About 500 police officers expected to quit the RUC next month as part of the severance arrangements negotiated after the Patten report on the future of policing in Northern Ireland.

RUC officers taking up severance package

Financial provisions are in place for a further 750 officers to leave the force over the next 12 months. A start to recruitment now would see the new officers on the streets by next spring.

It is expected that Protestants and Catholics would be recruited on a 50/50 basis. Protestants currently make up 92% of the RUC.

Negotiations continue

The Northern Ireland parties remain deadlocked over the interlocking issues of policing, disarmament and demilitarisation.

Negotiations aimed at finding agreement are still continuing.

The SDLP and Sinn Fein says there is still a "gap" between what was proposed in the Patten report and what the British Government has put forward.

Northern Ireland Secretary John Reid met both the parties seperately in Belfast on Monday.

After the meeting, Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams said he had no progress to report.

Gerry Adams: Sceptical the prime minister could broker any deal

And he said Prime Minister Tony Blair would be unlikely to strike a deal deal if he visited Northern Ireland this week for further talks with the political parties.

"If he is coming here to do a deal, then I see no basis for a visit at this time," he said.

"If he is coming for some other purpose, well that is a matter for his judgement.

"But if he is coming in to do a deal on these issues, then he will have to move a lot further than a plane journey from London to Belfast," Mr Adams said.

SDLP seeks assurances

The nationalist SDLP is under pressure to endorse the policing reforms.

Unionists and the government want the party to join the Police Board to which the new Police Service of Northern Ireland will be accountable.

However, the SDLP has refused to do so until it receives assurances from the government on a number of elements of the reform programme.

These include:

plans for the phasing out of the full-time police reserve

future of the RUC Special Branch

name of the new service

police badge

flags over police stations

inquiries into a number of controversial killings.

The Northern Ireland secretary is expected to travel to Dublin later in the week where he will hold talks with Irish Foreign Minister Brian Cowen.

Policing is likely to be high on the agenda.