SDLP Policing Board member Mark H Durkan has said that the PSNI's leadership has serious questions to answer over a significant data breach.

Foyle MLA Mr Durkan said:

"A data breach of the nature reported this evening is extremely worrying and will be causing immense distress for officers across the PSNI and across our communities tonight.

"We are in touch with senior police but it is important that the Chief Constable makes an urgent statement about the scale of the breach, how it happened and the remedial actions that are being taken to address the situation.

"It is inconceivable that any single member of staff would have the ability to download a detailed database with such sensitive information. This represents a critical systems failure and must be addressed immediately."