Deciding who can and who cannot collect intelligence: developing a hierarchy of trust within uniformed intelligence gathering during the Northern Irish Troubles

<p>This paper seeks to explore two interlinked questions. Firstly, to what extent can the relationship between uniformed organisations in Northern Ireland be seen as a hierarchy informed by inter-organisational trust. Secondly, where does the Ulster Defence Regiment fit within this environment. This second question is spurned by the apparent contradiction between the rationale for the UDR’s existence throughout the Troubles, that it would be a local force that provided both bulk for the military but also an extensive local knowledge that the regular army could not build, and a clear fear on behalf of policy makers that if the UDR were to become in intelligence gathering and handling that this access might be abused.</p>