HC Deb 16 November 1989 vol 160 c401W
Mr. John D. Taylor

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what restrictions on nationality apply to candidates for the post of Chief Constable of the Royal Ulster Constabulary.

Mr. Cope

To be eligible for appointment all police officers of any grade in the United Kingdom must be:

  1. (a) a British citizen; or
  2. (b) a Commonwealth citizen (other than a British citizen) or a citizen of the Republic of Ireland, in which case one of the following conditions must be satisfied:
    1. (i) at least one parent must be, or have been at death a Commonwealth citizen or a citizen of the Republic of Ireland; or
    2. (ii) the candidate must have resided in a country or territory within the Commonwealth or in the Republic of Ireland, or have been employed elsewhere in the service of the Crown, or partly have so resided and partly been so employed, for at least five years out of the last eight years preceding the date of his appointment.