'The threat in Northern Ireland has never gone away'

This week is the 20th anniversary of the publication of the Patten Report which saw the establishment of the Police Service of Northern Ireland and the introduction of 50-50 recruitment.

The 50-50 process was introduced as part of the Patten policing reforms, and was aimed at increasing the number of Catholic officers in a predominantly Protestant force.

In an interview with the BBC, Sir Hugh said the current numbers in the PSNI - at about 6,700 - are not sufficient.

He said anything below 7,500, envisaged in Patten, was dangerous.