Catholic recruitment to the PSNI fell drastically last year, with 2024 marking a record low for the force which replaced the RUC.
Catholic representation among new recruits has been declining in recent years but it can now be revealed that the pattern is getting worse.
A Freedom of Information request obtained by The Irish News shows that Catholics made up 26.8% of new recruits in 2021 and 21.8% of recruits in 2022.
This was followed by an increase in 2023 to 25.6% of new recruits.
However, the figure dipped by 8.5 percentage points in 2024 with Catholics making up just 17.1% of new hires.
In 1999, the Patten Report found that just 8.3% of the RUC was made up of Catholics.
This figure increased after the former police force was disbanded and replaced by the PSNI in 2001 and a 50:50 hiring policy was introduced.
The initiative meant that the PSNI had to recruit a Catholic officer for every Protestant that they recruited - and led to a surge in Catholic recruitment.
However, the 50:50 scheme was disbanded in 2011 following calls from unionist politicians.
The high levels of Catholic recruitment during this era are now reflected on the streets as the PSNI is currently made up of around 32% Catholic officers.
However, the current decline in Catholic recruitment will bring concerns that this percentage will fall as the initial PSNI joiners start to retire.
The recruitment trend is mirrored by those openly identifying as nationalist within the force.
Just 3.8% of new recruits in 2024 openly identified at nationalist - the lowest number since 2020.
The PSNI recruited 1,377 officers in total between 2020 and the end of March 2025.
Of the officers recruited during that period, 76.3% came from a Protestant background, while just 21.6% from a Catholic background.
Assistant Chief Officer Clare Duffield, the Police Service of Northern Ireland’s Head of People & Organisational Development, said: “We are committed to being representative of the community we serve. Policing is a career that makes a difference to our society and as such we seek to recruit talented, dedicated people from all backgrounds.
“We will continue to engage with all communities, and would strongly encourage anyone who is interested in a career in policing and who did not apply in this current campaign to come and talk to us about future opportunities.
“We put significant effort into our outreach and engagement activity and strive to become known for the rewarding roles and meaningful work that a career in policing can offer.
“We acknowledge that there are challenges when recruiting from those backgrounds that are underrepresented but this is something we are determined to address.
“We want to attract talent from all across our society, people who are great at problem solving, communicating, who enjoy working as part of a team and who want to make a difference to victims of crime, and the communities of Northern Ireland.”