A POLICE force branded one of the worst in the country is heading for fresh controversy, it was claimed last night.

Serving officers have told The Northern Echo that a new way of dealing with crime will leave Cleveland Police with plummeting burglary detection rates.

The force is one of a handful in the country to pilot a scheme which involves reviewing evidence earlier to establish which charges should be brought against suspects.

It involves forging closer links with the Crown Prosecution Service and is designed to save money and cut court time by reducing the number of unsuccessful prosecutions.

But some officers are worried that the new system - introduced by the Government - will result in further public embarrassment when crime figures are revealed next year.

Crimes initially investigated as a burglary are being downgraded and, even if convictions are secured, they will be for the lesser offence and the burglary will be classed as "undetected".

One detective said: "We are being told time and again by reviewing lawyers that the chances of getting convictions for burglaries are less than for, say, handling stolen goods, and the charges are reduced. This will leave us, in a year's time, with sky-high figures for handling and a catalogue of unsolved burglaries.

"This force gets enough criticism, sometimes rightly, for mistakes, but we will get hammered again when the crime figures are released."

Another serving officer added: "I am all for saving the taxpayer money but I don't believe this is the right way to go about it, and the results will be horrendous."

Force chiefs, already reeling from a report last month which branded them among the six worst in the country - accept burglary detection rates might be made to look bad.

But Supt Ian Rowland, of the administration of justice department, refuted suggestions the scheme was an ill-conceived idea. He said: "Police officers are often reluctant to change, but in a month or two I'm sure everything will be fine. You can never be sure that the figures won't be altered, but we won't know until 12 months' time.

"This is about making sure we have got the right information. They can't come with half-cocked information and must have the correct evidence if they are going to proceed with something.