Police chiefs attack Tory crime claims
Police chiefs have criticised the Conservatives for exaggerating the real threat of crime ahead of the general election.
Their objections came after Tory leader Michael Howard took out adverts in local newspapers claiming that crime had risen under Labour.
Some police chiefs were said to be “incensed” by the ad.
Richard Brunstrom, chief constable of north Wales police, told Channel 4 News the adverts were misleading and “quite improperly” sought to stir up fear of rising crime.
Mr Brunstrom said the message contradicted British Crime Survey figures showing crime had been falling for a number of years, “both locally and nationally”.
“I am disappointed in the extreme that it has appeared in the press in a very marginal constituency in the run-up to a general election,” he said.
The Association of Chief Police Officers said in a statement: “If we wanted to increase fear of crime the select use of statistics can help in doing that.”
Six other police chiefs complained about the selective use of data, Channel 4 News reported.
Mr Howard on Thursday pledged to “wage a war” on thugs and yob culture and urged police to face up to them, “eyeballing” them and “invading their personal body space” on the streets.
Last night, shadow home affairs spokesman David Davis said his party made no apology for exposing the present crime problem that made “life a misery for the hard-working, law-abiding majority of people in this country”.
