Police have recorded a drop in crime in North Yorkshire for the third year running. Crime reporter HELEN GABRIEL investigates.

"NORTH Yorkshire continues to be one of the safest areas in the country in which to live and work."

That was the verdict of North Yorkshire's top cop, Assistant Chief Constable Peter Bagshaw, as figures showed crime in the county had been slashed for the third year running.

The Press told last week how the number of crimes in North Yorkshire and the city of York fell by 7.2 per cent to 54,573 in 2006/2007 - 4,255 fewer than in the year before.

Since 2003/2004, the annual total of crimes has been reduced by 16,500.

Mr Bagshaw attributes part of that drop in crime to new technology available to the police.

He said: "As we develop further technologies, such as CCTV and Automatic Number Plate Recognition, we are closing down the streets of the county and the city of York to those who wish to inflict both antisocial and offending behaviour on the law-abiding majority."

The Press told last month how York is to get state-of-the-art movable CCTV cameras and £40,000 of sophisticated webcams in a bid to cut crime.

The innovative system is being developed by council officers, and will allow cameras to be put in places where police intelligence suggests they are most needed.

There will be two new types of camera - a moveable one, which will transmit in real time to the existing CCTV monitoring room, and another one based on internet technology, which will be used to target graffiti, fly-tipping and antisocial behaviour.

More than 500 people had their vehicles towed away in the county last year after being caught driving without road tax or insurance, thanks to the new Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) unit.

The number was double the force's target for vehicle seizures for 2006.

Police are also catching sat nav thieves in York red-handed with an elaborate sting using state-of-the-art tracking devices.

They are planting pricey satellite navigation systems, fitted with tracking technology, in unmarked cars across the city and waiting for thieves to strike.

As soon as the device is moved, a signal is sent from the sat nav to a portable computer and police use it to track down the unsuspecting thief - or the person who has bought the gadget - within half-an-hour of it being stolen.

Mr Bagshaw said community spirit had also played a part in the police's success at combating crime in the last 12 months.

"All of this would not be possible without the support of the people of the city of York and North Yorkshire," he said. "The figures speak volumes about the level of community spirit which exists in the city, the county and among our partner agencies.

"Our work with them has never been closer or more important and, as our neighbourhood policing teams become firmly embedded in our communities, we continue to strengthen the links which will endure into the future and provide a solid foundation on which to build further success."

The neighbourhood policing teams were newly launched in February, with a dedicated team for each area.

Initiatives they have launched include the "Cop Idol" meetings, allowing local residents to vote for the crime priorities in their area.

Police have also welcomed being given more powers to tackle violent crime under new legislation which came into force on Friday.

The measures, part of the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006, give police and communities strong powers to tackle violent crimes involving guns, knives, alcohol, mobile phones and football.

Home Secretary John Reid said: "The Government's priority is to give police and communities the tools they need to tackle violent crime. These new powers will enable police to better tackle gun and knife crime as well as alcohol-related disorder.

"After listening to community concerns on knives and guns, I decided to bring forward the use of these measures as a matter of urgency. These new powers are the latest step, an example of how the Government is working to make us all safer, putting the interests of ordinary people first."

He said crime had dropped nationally by 35 per cent since 1997, and violent crime has been reduced by 34 per cent over the same period.

"However, we are not complacent and we recognise that more needs to be done to protect the public," he said.


Tough new measures to tackle violent crime

* It is now an offence to use someone to hide or carry a weapon. Previously, offenders could avoid prosecution if they passed a weapon to someone else to hide or carry for them.

* The range of offences for which an offender can be given a mandatory minimum five year sentence is being extended.

* It is now an offence to sell a primer, a key component of ammunition, unless the purchaser produces a suitable firearms certificate.

* New powers for police and trading standards officers to penalise licensed premises that persistently sell alcohol to under-18s. If they sell alcohol to a minor three times in a three month period, the licence-holder now faces prosecution with their licence suspended for three months and a £10,000 fine.

* It is now an offence to offer to reprogramme a mobile phone. Anyone caught doing this faces up to five years in jail and/or an unlimited fine.

* The maximum period of a football banning order has increased from three years to five years. Powers to apply for banning orders are extended for the first time to the Crown Prosecution Service and British Transport Police. They were previously limited to local chief police officers.

* Ticket touting laws are extended to cover the sale of unauthorised football tickets on the internet, leading to a maximum fine of £5,000.

How crime has been reduced:

* Burglary fell by 11 per cent, to 7,056 from 7,939.

* Domestic burglary has fallen by six per cent, to 2,473 from 2,619.

* Non-domestic burglary is down seven per cent, to 4,367 from 4,704.

* Sexual offences are down by seven per cent, to 579 from 624.

* Police also achieved a detection rate of 28.1 per cent, compared to a 26.3 per cent last year. As a result, a total of 15,336 offenders have been dealt with.

* In 2006, North Yorkshire Police brought in a new way to record antisocial behaviour which means the annual figures cannot be compared but, since the new format came in, the force has seen a 9.3 per cent decrease in the number of antisocial behaviour incidents reported, to 22,779 from 25,115.