Deputy First Minister Emma Little Pengelly hit out at Justice Minister Naomi Long for not attending the meeting
The Executive have agreed a funding package to cover the cost of the compensation associated with the PSNI’s data breach despite the Justice Minister not attending this morning’s meeting.
It is understood that Ministers approved a £120m package to cover the cost associated with the breach. This comes after the Justice Minister faced scrutiny by announcing that the funding had been agreed in an appearance on the Nolan Show last week, despite the decision not having been taken by the Executive.
Justice Minister Naomi Long took to X to welcome the funding before an official statement was released by her department.
In the statement, Justice Minister Naomi Long said: “I welcome the Executive’s decision to commit to providing £119m to the Department to fund the costs of the PSNI data breach.
“This will enable the PSNI to advance negotiations with police officers and police staff in a timely manner, to bring about an early settlement of the ongoing legal proceedings and ensure that significant additional costs to the public purse are not incurred. I am also mindful of the distress experienced by those affected and I hope that today’s decision will bring reassurance to staff and their families.”
Deputy First Minister Emma Little Pengelly said that she was “pleased” that the Executive had managed to secure the money but hit out at the Justice Minister’s absence from the meeting.
“The PSNI data breach was a costly mistake within the PSNI. The Treasury has refused to meet the cost of this error. We have stepped in to secure funding, in acknowledgement that the PSNI does not have the resources to settle the cases and that this was the right thing to do. The sooner these cases are settled, the better, before legal costs ramp up any further,” she said.
“Despite the Justice Minister not attending the Executive today, I am pleased we have secured formal agreement from the Executive for the funding.
“The loss of £120m to funding public services is significant. I have also asked the Head of the Civil Service on the actions to ensure the risks of these data breaches is minimised, and a much better approach is secured across the system
“Whilst this is good news for the PSNI, it will have significant impact for next year’s overall budget for public services which is far from ideal.”
Police Federation for Northern Ireland Chair Liam Kelly said: “Thankfully, this deal is now across the line. It will come as welcome relief as we approach Christmas.
“That said, it will be some time before officers see compensation awards. We have six test cases before the Court and they must be concluded first. Awards set by the Court will ‘signpost’ levels of compensation that will be offered to their colleagues.
“There is no one-size-fits all. Some officers have had upsetting, distressing and traumatising experiences on the back of this massive breach. There are colleagues in sensitive posts along with others who went to great pains to keep their employment details confidential who’ve been greatly impacted.
“As with most things, the devil will be in the detail. So far, all we know is that the £119 million has been ringfenced, and that’s progress. What this means in practice has to be explored. We were told by the Justice Minister in her -pre-announcement gaffe last week that compensation would start to be paid in the next financial year (April 2026).
“We welcome this announcement but there remains a long way to go before this unfortunate incident can be put behind us.”
The Department for Justice have been approached to account for the Minister’s whereabouts.
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