The vast majority of the 1,500 people to be recruited as part-time police officers will come from the Catholic community. A document obtained by the Irish News shows that 70% – or up to 1,100, – of the new part-timers will be Catholics.
The document details the total number of Catholics to be recruited in each of the 29 District Police Command Units – aimed at reflecting the percentage of Catholics living in each of the areas.
It is the first time the breakdown of the proposed representation from the Catholic community has been made public in a key aspect of Patten's police reforms.
The campaign to appoint part-time officers has already begun and, while not subject to the 50/50 Patten principles, it is proposed that areas like west Belfast, north Belfast, Newry and Mourne, Foyle and Fermanagh will have a number of part-time officers which reflects their large Catholic majorities.
This will dramatically increase Catholic representation which currently stands at just 5%.
While the timing of the drive to enlist Catholic recruits hinges on Sinn Féin's support for the new policing arrange-ments, the plan envisages a community police force in west Belfast, 83% of which will be Catholic.
Of the 157 to be recruited from the west of the city, 130 will be sought from within the Catholic community.
Police are also seeking to recruit 100 Catholics in north Belfast out of a total of 122 part-time officers.
In Newry and Mourne – another area with a large nationalist population – the police are seeking to recruit 84 Catholics from a proposed new batch of 102.
The picture is similar in Fermanagh, with the proposed recruitment of 62 Catholics out of a quota of 72.
Just over a week ago police unveiled the first stage of the campaign to enlist 130 part-time officers from largely Protestant areas.
Police have already said there are no plans yet to recruit part-time officers in largely nationalist populated areas throughout Northern Ireland as the political climate was not right.
However, the Irish News understands that the PSNI told the Policing Board last week that a decision to target another three to six District Command Units, which sources have indicated will include key nationalists areas, will be made in April.
Last night (Wednesday) SDLP Policing Board member Joe Byrne said the target could create an 'unprecedented' impact in areas like west Belfast, Foyle and Fermanagh.
Unionists have already called for the scrapping of the strict 50/50 employment guidelines to the full-time service, claiming it is unfair to Protestant applicants who are turned down to maintain the religious balance.
