Independent Assessor of PSNI Recruitment Vetting reappointed
Date published:
Justice Minister Naomi Long has announced the reappointment of Sir John Gillen as Independent Assessor of PSNI Recruitment Vetting.
Sir John’s current term ended on 30 April 2025 and his second term runs from 1 May 2025 until 30 April 2029.
The Independent Assessor’s role is to review, on appeal, decisions of the PSNI vetting panel established by the Chief Constable to assess the suitability of any candidate for appointment as a police trainee or member of PSNI support staff .
Announcing the reappointment, Naomi Long said:
I welcome Sir John’s reappointment to the post of Independent Assessor of PSNI Recruitment Vetting. His knowledge and experience will provide an additional level of oversight at this stage of the police recruitment process.
This appointment has been made in accordance with the CPANI Code of Practice.
Notes to editors:
1. The Independent Assessor is an independent statutory office holder appointed in accordance with the Police (Recruitment) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2001, as amended.
2. Before making the appointment the Minister of Justice consulted the Northern Ireland Policing Board.
3. The Regulations require that the person appointed as Independent Assessor shall have held judicial office within any part of the United Kingdom.
4. Annual gross remuneration for the Independent Assessor is £8,250 payable monthly. A per diem fee is also payable in line with the rate of fees for judicial office holders in Northern Ireland.
5. All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, the Commissioner for Public Appointments for Northern Ireland requires the political activity of appointees to be published. Sir John has indicated that he has no political activity.
6. All media enquiries should be directed to the Department of Justice Press Office via Email
Biography
Sir John was educated at Methodist College Belfast and The Queen’s College, Oxford. He was appointed to the High Court in January 1999, having been called to the Bar in 1970 and taken Silk in 1983. He was appointed Family Judge and was Chairman of the Children Order Advisory Committee from January 2001 until December 2006. In January 2007 he was assigned to judicial review and in September 2008 was appointed judge in charge of the Queen’s Bench Division. In 2014 he was appointed to the Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland until his retirement in 2017. He was the author of the Review of Civil and Family Justice in Northern Ireland in 2017 and the Gillen Report into the Law and Procedures in Serious Sexual Offences in Northern Ireland in 2019.
Political Activity: None