Next week's graduation ceremony for the first recruits to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) was last night in danger of being dogged by political controversy and mean-spiritedness.
The new uniforms and emblems were displayed for the first time yesterday, but this was overshadowed by a dispute over the planned attendance at the graduation by the Garda Commissioner, Mr Pat Byrne.
The SDLP has already expressed its opposition to the outgoing Chief Constable, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, attending the graduation.
And while not directly commenting on the graduation, the Sinn Féin Education Minister, Mr Martin McGuinness, described Sir Ronnie as part of the "British war machine" and said his retirement was of no consequence to him.
Politicians, some Policing Board members and senior police figures were last night engaged in talks in an attempt to ensure that the ceremony could be conducted free from unseemly political wrangling. Police chiefs are anxious that Mr Byrne should have a place on the reviewing stand as the 40 or so student officers graduate as members of the PSNI.
A spokesman said this was to reflect the great co-operation between the two forces.
But a UUP Assembly member and Policing Board member, Mr Fred Cobain, warned of a unionist boycott of the ceremony if Mr Byrne had any officiating role on Friday week.
A senior DUP politician also said last night "We won't be there" if Mr Byrne is present at the ceremony in such a capacity.
The PSNI, however, stated that the current plan for the graduation was that Mr Colin Cramphorn, who takes over as acting PSNI chief constable on Monday, would be the presiding officer.
And it was hoped he would be joined on the review stand by Sir Ronnie in his new role as a member of Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, by Mr Byrne and by the PSNI training officer, Supt Roy Fleming.
The PSNI rather than the Policing Board is responsible for organising the graduation ceremony as it judged to be an operational issue.
The North's 26 District Policing Partnerships (DPPs), whose members will be proposed by local authorities, should be operative by the autumn, according to the board.
The DPPs had aroused controversy over claims that they could be a backdoor to allow paramilitaries have a direct role in policing.
