The RUC Chief Constable, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, yesterday welcomed the decision by both unionist parties to join the new Policing Board and said he hoped that training of the first intake of 50 per cent mixed Catholic and Protestant recruits could begin by early November.
The chief constable also said yesterday he had received no intelligence reports to suggest decommissioning by the IRA was imminent. However, other senior security sources indicate that they expect to see action on IRA decommissioning soon.
It is understood that the "Real IRA" is also considering ending its campaign.
The "Real IRA", which carried out the worst single bombing atrocity of the Troubles when it killed 29 people as well as two near-term babies on August 15th, 1998, in Omagh, called a ceasefire in the aftermath of that atrocity.
However, it never observed this and has carried out more than 30 attacks in Northern Ireland and London in the past year.
If there are no serious moves towards decommissioning by the IRA followed by other loyalist and republican terrorist groups, it will be difficult for the new police service to implement some of the most important policing changes.
It had been hoped that there would be early programmes for reducing fortifications at police stations and winding down the Special Branch.
Sir Ronnie said yesterday that decisions on the size and deployment of his force would continue to be made, bearing in mind the prevailing security situation.
It is expected the Secretary of State, Dr Reid, will move quickly to appoint the new Policing Board to replace the Police Authority of Northern Ireland (PANI).
It is not expected any of the existing PANI members will be among the nine non-party political members of the new board.
The board is central to the programme of change for policing that will take place. The Oversight Commissioner for Policing, Mr Tom Constantine, and his secretariat, will oversee the implementation of changes to policing.
Mr Constantine estimated earlier this week that this programme will take seven to 10 years.
Following the induction of over 300 recruits, the change of name from Royal Ulster Constabulary to Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) will take place, possibly by the end of the year.
The establishing of the Policing Board will be followed by the beginning of appointments to the District Police Partnership Boards (DPPBs) which will be established in each of the 25 council areas outside Belfast, with a further four in the Belfast parliamentary constituencies.
It is not clear whether Sinn Fein, which is boycotting the main Policing Board, will nominate members to these district boards.
One of the main unionist objections to the implementation of the changes arising from the Patten report on policing was that Sinn Fein and ex-IRA prisoners could become members of district boards.
However, this issue might not now arise in view of Sinn Fein's stance.
Welcoming the unionist nominations, the Chief Constable said following on the appointment of the Policing Board there could be movement on a new uniform and the changing of emblems.
He said: "It is almost definite that we would begin training for the new trainees in early November. That is another positive step in the change process.
"We recruited on that 50/50 basis more than 300 in a competition which was originally designed to recruit 240, so again that is a another very positive step."