all crimes

I WAS not at all surprised by the Chief Constable of Cheshire glowingly reporting that crime figures are down. What disturbs me, however, is that there is no admission that it is reported crime figures, which are down, and no explanation of why this might be. Perhaps I can be of assistance.

People have become disillusioned with the length of time it takes to contact the police to report an incident, with the lack of response to reports and lack of follow up by officers, and with the often too-liberal attitude of officers to culprits.

Having said this, it may seem odd that my recommendation to everyone is to report every incident of crime, vandalism or anti-social behaviour they witness, and ensure they are given an incident number. If this overloads the system, so be it, at least the figures would then be a true reflection of the real situation.

Should the police fail to provide the level of service to which we, who fund their operation, believe we are entitled, then we can persuade our parish, town, borough and even county councils to pass votes of no confidence in the force - as I believe one parish council already has.

I firmly hope that it does not come to this and that the whole police strategy will be reviewed and amended.

CLR DOUG SHINGLER