YORK'S top policeman has hit back after an NHS report claimed violent crime in York was much worse than the national average.

Chief Superintendent Iain Spittal said there had been a substantial cut in such crimes recently, following sustained hard work in tackling alcohol-related and domestic violence.

He said he was proud of the achievements of police officers as they worked in partnership with City of York Council and other organisations.

The Press reported on Monday how shocking statistics on violent crime had been revealed in the first annual Public Health Report of the new North Yorkshire and York Primary Care Trust (PCT).

Citing Home Office figures, it said violent crime in the City of York Council area was significantly higher than the national average, with about 22 violent offences per 1,000 people in 2004/05, compared with only 19.5 per 1,000 people across England.

It said the picture for York was also worse than for the whole of the Yorkshire and Humber region, which had an average of about 21 such offences.

But Chief Supt Spittal claimed the figures provided a misleading picture of violent crime in York.

"As area commander and chair of the Safer York Partnership, I am proud of the substantial reductions in violent crime that have been achieved through collaborative working between City of York Council, the police and other key partners," he said.

"The article quotes 22 violent offences per 1,000 population in 2004/05. According to iQuanta data used by the Home Office to measure the performance of Community Safety Partnerships across the country, the violent crime figures for York 2006/07 were 9.83 woundings per 1,000 population and 4.08 common assaults per 1,000 population."

Chief Supt Spittal said overall, violent crime in York had fallen by 12 per cent in 2006/07 compared to 2005/06.

"This reduction was achieved through the sustained hard work of Safer York Partnership's multi-agency delivery groups tackling alcohol related night-time violence and domestic violence.

"The efforts of these delivery groups have been commended by the Home Office as examples of good practice and initiatives developed by the groups have been replicated in other parts of the country."