I attended the Neighbourhood Watch mini-conference at Millthorpe School (Anti-crime Designs Aimed At Keeping Burglars At Bay, April 10).

Your report omitted the widely supported call from the floor of the conference for more police officers to be appointed to North Yorkshire.

MP Hugh Bayley said there were a number of recruits in the pipeline but these would make up wastage so little real increase could be expected in the near future.

He seemed to accept the call for more and said he would pursue this with the Home Secretary.

What was not made explicit was just what is wanted by those who called for more police officers. My guess is that it is the sight of a police officer on foot on all our streets at least two or three times a week.

I suspect hundreds more officers would be needed to achieve that and I don't see any government paying for them.

Some years ago Hugh Bayley was honest enough to tell us that we could not meet all the demands made upon the National Health Service and that priorities would need to be established and that should be done openly and publicly.

The criminal justice system is unable to meet all that is demanded of it and it would be healthier if this was admitted. We might then look rationally at other ways of achieving what people want without increasing police strength.

One person told the conference how his community had put in place good neighbour practice which had given residents a sense of safety without the help of Neighbourhood Watch.

It is to these schemes we should look and not call fruitlessly for increases in police numbers.

John Staples,

St Paul's Square,

York.

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