A senior SDLP delegation has met the RUC Chief Constable, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, to discuss concerns over the British government's Policing Bill and the plan for its implementation.
Afterwards, the party's policing spokesman, Mr Alex Attwood, said the delegation had outlined the plan's "fault-lines." It "advised the Chief Constable that not only the flaws in the Police Bill but the fault-lines in the implementation plan need to be corrected. The law and the delivery of Patten in practice need to be guaranteed and both the Bill and the plan need to be revised."
The SDLP says one of the plan's main shortcomings is its failure to implement the closure of all interrogation centres, including Gough Barracks in Armagh. It also failed to deal adequately with the phasing-out of the full-time police reserve and did not contain detail on how part-time reserve officers would be recruited, Mr Attwood said.
"The SDLP has critically advised the Chief Constable that one year after the Patten report there is a lack of clarity and detail about what the police are doing to advance Patten," he added.
Mr Attwood was also critical that the implementation plan was not publicly available and had not been subject to any public consultation. There was "profound concern" over the "delay and doubt" in bringing the RUC Special Branch under the control of an assistant chief constable, the SDLP said. It also called on Sir Ronnie to allow the independent oversight commissioner, the former New York police chief, Mr Tom Constantine, to verify "all action arising from Patten".
"It is completely unsatisfactory that the RUC are currently preparing a training and development strategy but will not submit any information to the Oversight Commissioner until the autumn. This sidelines the work of the Oversight Commissioner and should be rectified immediately."
A statement from the Chief Constable said the plan was at an advanced stage but was "so huge a task" that it could not be reduced to a simple document. Sir Ronnie remained committed to the change process and hoped to invite the SDLP to a full presentation by the RUC's change management team soon, the statement said.
A delegation from the Ulster Democratic Party, which has links to the UDA, also met the Chief Constable. The party's leader, Mr Gary McMichael, said many of the issues on which Sinn Fein and the SDLP were campaigning were "cosmetic".
His delegation also raised the issue of 39 loyalists whose details had been given to republicans by the Parades Commission. Afterwards, he said the 39 might initiate legal action under the British Data Protection Act.
A delegation from the Progressive Unionist Party, which has links to the UVF, has already met the commission on the matter.