Northern Ireland's air and sea ports are vital for our business and recreational needs. Criminals may attempt to use them to facilitate the transport of illicit goods or for human trafficking.
Knowing what to look for and reporting suspicious behaviour will help keep our small ports secure.
The Police Service of Northern Ireland’s Ports Team are part of the UK’s Counter Terrorism Borders Policing network, which is a collaboration of UK police forces working in partnership with the UK intelligence community to help protect the public and our national security by preventing, deterring and investigating terrorist activity.
The Ports Team assists front line officers throughout Northern Ireland, and further afield, with serious crime investigations, modern slavery and human trafficking operations, crime reduction initiatives and high risk missing person enquiries.
As part of the Service's Crime Department, the Ports teams are part of a multi-agency approach to keep people safe within our communities, working alongside Border Force, HM Revenue and Customs, Home Office Immigration Enforcement, National Crime Agency, Coastguard and the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) among others.
In addition to teams based at the major ports across Northern Ireland, officers regularly visit smaller maritime ports, non-commercial airports and private airfields.
The major ports covered are:
Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000 provides designated ports officers with unique powers to examine people who pass through the United Kingdom’s borders.
Schedule 7 is one of the vital tools police use to help keep the public safe. It allows specially trained police officers to stop, question and when necessary, search and detain, individuals and goods travelling through the UK’s border to determine whether they may be involved or concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism.
For further information on Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000, please visit the Counter Terrorism Policing website.
