The Belfast Harbour Police is a small, specialised ports police force, with responsibility for the

Port of Belfast Belfast Harbour is a major maritime hub in Belfast, Northern Ireland, handling 67% of Northern Ireland's seaborne trade and about 25% of the maritime trade of the entire island of Ireland. It is a vital gateway for raw materials, exports and c ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. It was founded in 1847, making it the oldest continuously-operating law enforcement agency on the island of

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Powers

Officers of this force are sworn in as ' special constables' under section 79 of the

Harbours, Docks, and Piers Clauses Act 1847 The Harbours, Docks and Piers Clauses Act 1847 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which governs harbours, docks and piers. Port police The act allows two justices of the peace to swear in port police officers as "special constables" w ...

. As a result, officers have the full powers of a constable on any land owned by the Belfast Harbour Authority and at any place within one mile (1.6 km) of any owned land. The extent of Belfast Harbour includes the

George Best Belfast City Airport George Best Belfast City Airport is a single-runway airport in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Situated in County Down, it is adjacent to the Port of Belfast and is from Belfast City Centre. It shares the site with the Spirit AeroSystems (form ...

, though policing of the airport by the Harbour Police was discontinued in February 2009.
The force comprised 28 constables, six sergeants and one chief officer in 2009. Whilst on duty, BHP officers are armed, which is believed to be a unique situation amongst the small number of privately owned ports police services across the United Kingdom. The service may also enforce the

Belfast Harbour Commissioners Belfast Harbour is a major maritime hub in Belfast, Northern Ireland, handling 67% of Northern Ireland's seaborne trade and about 25% of the maritime trade of the entire island of Ireland. It is a vital gateway for raw materials, exports and c ...

' by-laws, giving them more powers specific to the harbour.

Officers

Belfast Harbour Police consists of uniformed police officers and a

CID CID may refer to: Film * ''C.I.D.'' (1955 film), an Indian Malayalam film * ''C.I.D.'' (1956 film), an Indian Hindi film * ''C. I. D.'' (1965 film), an Indian Telugu film * ''C.I.D.'' (1990 film), an Indian Hindi film Television * ''CID'' ( ...

section who provide 24-hour cover throughout the 2,000-acre Harbour Estate, including almost 17 miles of roads. Their vehicles are equipped with Tracker stolen vehicle detection devices. Officers are armed with the

Glock 17 Glock is a brand of polymer-Receiver (firearms), framed, Recoil operation#Short recoil operation, short recoil-operated, locked-breech semi-automatic pistols designed and produced by Austrian manufacturer Glock Ges.m.b.H., Glock Ges.m.b.H. The ...

9mm pistol.

Uniforms

Unlike the green uniforms worn by the

Police Service of Northern Ireland The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI; ga, Seirbhís Póilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ') is the police, police force that serves Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabu ...

, BHP officers wear a black and white uniform, similar to those worn by police officers in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

. Also unlike the PSNI, BHP also uses the standard black and white police

sillitoe tartan Sillitoe tartan is the nickname given to the distinctive black and white chequered pattern, correctly known as ''dicing'', which was originally associated with the police in Scotland. It later gained widespread use in the rest of the United Ki ...

insignia on their forage caps and the rank insignia for the rank of sergeant incorporates the downturned chevrons, again similar to police agencies in Britain. Any major or serious crime and incidents such as murder, acts of terrorism or armed robbery are the responsibility of the local

territorial police force A territorial police force is a police service that is responsible for an area defined by sub-national boundaries, distinguished from other police services which deal with the entire country or a type of crime. In countries organized as federations, ...

, the

Equipment

Like most Northern Ireland police or public security services, BHP officers are regularly armed and are equipped with the

Glock Glock is a brand of polymer- framed, short recoil-operated, locked-breech semi-automatic pistols designed and produced by Austrian manufacturer Glock Ges.m.b.H. The firearm entered Austrian military and police service by 1982 after it was th ...

17, previously being equipped with six-shot revolvers. Officers also carry typical UK police equipment, including a radio, baton, incapcicant spray.

Vehicles

BHP use cars including Volkswagens, Landrover Discovery, Freelanders and Kia Sportage and motorbikes to patrol the harbour. Vehicles are equipped in typical UK police blue and yellow style "battenburg" colour scheme, with blue lights and 'Harbour Police' wording.

References

External links

Roll of HonourImages of Belfast Harbour Police on Flickr
{{Use British English, date=January 2015 1847 establishments in Ireland Organizations established in 1847 Police forces of Northern Ireland Harbour Police Port police forces of the United Kingdom