New guidelines on the use of plastic bullets by the RUC are expected "before the summer", Lord Dubs, a junior Northern Ireland minister, said last night.
Lord Dubs said in the Lords the guidelines were being drawn up by the Association of Chief Police Officers, representing chief constables in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Minister rejected a call from Labour's Lord Stallard for a ban on the use of plastic bullets, arguing that they were needed to protect lives and people's homes.
