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Baggott to ‘take police forward’ (BBC News Northern Ireland)
Matt Baggott has called his new role as the head of the Police Service of Northern Ireland his “greatest professional privilege”.
The 50-year-old replaced Sir Hugh Orde and is the third leader of NI’s rebranded police force.
At a press conference, along with Policing Board Chairman Barry Gilligan, Mr Baggott said he was here “to take policing forward into the future”.
He added he would “deliver an impartial, personal policing service”.
The married father-of-three comes to the PSNI after seven years as chief constable of the Leicestershire Constabulary.
Mr Baggott takes over at a time of shrinking police budgets and a surge in dissident republican activity.
When asked about recent discussions around the PSNI budget Mr Baggott said it was his job get the “best use out of the resources we have”.
“ I don’t think neighbourhood policing should be judged by a tragedy ”
Matt Baggott PSNI chief constable
“I’ve come here with a record of challenging bureaucracy, challenging processes. I need to free people up to improve that policing presence,” he said
“This is not something I’m starting. This is work that has been ongoing for a long time, there is an awful lot of good people doing very good work in neighbourhoods at the moment.”
Mr Baggot was also asked for his reaction to the death of Fiona Pilkington and her teenage disabled daughter in 2007.
Last week an inquest in Leicestershire heard Ms Pilkington killed herself and her daughter in a burning car following ongoing intimidation from a gang of youths.
She had contacted police more than 30 times about abuse claims, the last report on the day she died.
“It would be wrong to judge neighbourhood policing, or the effectiveness of neighbourhood policing in Leicester by one tragedy,” said Chief Constable Baggott.
“There has been some enormous progress made over the last few years in delivering very consistent promises, a good street presence and dealing with anti-social behaviour and I don’t think neighbourhood policing should be judged by a tragedy.”
Operation Descent
The threat from dissident republicans in the run up to Mr Baggott’s appointment led to a police operation.
Within the last month there has been the discovery of a 600lb bomb in a border area and civil disturbances in Lurgan.
Operation Descent has seen an increase in vehicle checkpoints and high visibility patrols.
The threat from dissident republicans while not in the same league as that once posed by the IRA is deadly.
Two soldiers and a police officer have been killed by dissidents in 2009.
The murders were condemned across the political spectrum, with the leadership of mainstream republicanism branding the dissidents “traitors”.

Dissident threat ‘real’ – Baggott (U TV)
Northern Ireland’s new chief constable has pledged to work with all the people of the region to defeat dissident republican terrorists opposed to the peace process.
On his first day in the job, Matt Baggott said the threat posed by the violent extremists was real and should not be underplayed.
Security is high across Northern Ireland amid fears the dissidents would try to mark the arrival of the former head of the Leicestershire force with violence. One man was arrested after a number of early morning raids in Dungannon, Co Tyrone.
Mr Baggott comes to the job with a reputation as a strong advocate of neighbourhood policing and in his first public appearance as chief constable he stressed the key part communities would play in subduing the dissidents.
“The threat is real, it would be wrong of me not to say that,” he said, after a meeting with the chair of Northern Ireland Policing Board Barry Gilligan.
“I don’t diminish it, I don’t underplay it, it is real. And there are some people doing some dedicated work at the moment to deal with it.
“The way to deal with it is for communities themselves in the vast, vast majority to say no to the people who want to return to the past.”
He added: “The greatest resource we have here is the communities themselves.”
Challenge
Speaking ahead of Mr Baggott’s arrival, Basil McCrea, an Ulster Unionist member of the NI Policing Board – the PSNI’s oversight body – said the dissidents would attempt to challenge the new chief’s authority from the outset.
“He will be tested, there will be no doubt of that,” said the Lagan Valley Assembly member.
“But he has the board’s full backing and we just hope he can deliver for the whole of Northern Ireland.”
The growing threat posed by the dissidents is just one issue in the packed in-tray awaiting Mr Baggott.
The father-of-three will assume command of the PSNI when the force is having to balance multimillion-pound funding cuts with growing public demands for more officers on the beat.
He also takes the reins ahead of the politically sensitive transfer of security responsibilities from Westminster to the devolved administration at Stormont.
Add to that a looming court order to hand over top secret reports on alleged Royal Ulster Constabulary “shoot to kill” incidents during the Troubles and the ramifications of an internal performance review that flagged up serious shortcomings in day-to-day policing within the present day PSNI, it is clear Sir Hugh’s successor will not have much of a honeymoon period.