YORK'S leading policeman today apologised to citizens who want to see more bobbies on the beat.

Chief Superintendent John Lacy, commander of North Yorkshire Police's Central area, also urged the public to abandon the "myth of Dixon of Dock Green".

He appealed for people in York and Selby to understand the modern-day fight against crime, where officers need to tackle drug and gun offences.

Chief Supt Lacy said: "A fundamental part of our strategy has been to combat drugs and this is why the visible presence on the streets has not been as high-profile as I promised.

"For that, I apologise. But the increased crime in some of our areas has made it necessary for us to put more resources into breaking and disrupting the drugs supply on our streets which is causing us a rise in crime.

"The simple truth is there are more bobbies on the beat, but you see them in different guises. One has to remember that this is not the 60s, or indeed the 70s, we are policing 2002.

"The fact is the police in this city and Selby are working harder than ever catching criminals and detecting more serious offences."

A major thrust of the police's strategy has been a crackdown on drug dealers, whose trade brings not only human misery but also a massive surge in crimes such as burglary, as users steal to feed their addictions.

A string of operations has put behind bars nine leading figures from the York and Selby drugs scene, and another 36 people are currently in the court system charged with serious drug crimes.

Chief Supt Lacy said people in York constantly reminded him about the city's well-known and respected policing characters of the 1960s and 1970s, who were able to take time for people to "have a cuppa with a copper".

"While community bobbies are the foundation of policing, we must once and for all put to rest the myth of Dixon of Dock Green," he said.

"Their belt was there to keep their trousers up, not like my current officers whose belt has hanging from it their CS gas, their Asp (new style truncheon) their Airwave radio, with satellite positioning chip, their quick-cuffs and their first aid kits.

"Policing in today's society has changed out of all recognition from the 60s and 70s. My officers are dealing with ten times more crime than in the 60s and now face a society based on drugs with a firearms culture. The authority of the police is not now taken for granted and is being challenged."

City of York Council yesterday agreed to invite North Yorkshire police's new chief constable to speak with members about rising crime figures in the city.

The move follows the release earlier this year of statistics which showed crime in York and Selby had increased by 38 per cent in April and May compared to the same time last year.

Chief Supt Lacy said at the time it was a "worrying trend".

Updated: 11:55 Wednesday, September 18, 2002