Sir, - I have been working exclusively in the area of criminal law in the magistrates courts and police stations of the north of England for a year.

I believe:

(1) Most of the robberies are being committed by a very small number of muggers and robbers.

(2) Most burglaries and a large part of the shoplifting is being committed by a small number of people in each community. Those responsible are often heroin addicts.

(3) Some young offenders are kept in local authority care. They encourage children who are also in local authority care simply because their parents cannot look after them to start offending.

(4) Witnesses are often too afraid to come forward for fear of reprisals. Juries in crown court cases plainly feel intimidated. People attending ID parades are too afraid to pick out robbers and muggers when they recognise them for fear of reprisals. The shorter and more lenient the sentences the more this is true.

(5) The police are outnumbered. They are caught in a numbers game prosecuting relatively trivial matters in order to keep their conviction rate figures up. The police rely on confessions in interview at police stations to secure convictions. Very little detective work takes place,

(6) A policeman can take up to six hours to arrest and process one shoplifter.

(7) People who emerge from prison - even youth offending institutions - are usually much more dangerous than when they were sent there. This is especially true of violent criminals.

(8) Defendants show disrespect towards magistrates in court in major towns and cities. The number of cases before our magistrates are now so great these courts are failing to cope with them.

Perhaps we should consider the following:

(a) A way should be found to separate the small number of persistent violent criminals robbers and muggers from the rest of us for long periods for our protection.

(b) Increase the number of Customs officers to stop drugs coming into the country.

(e) Young offenders who are in local authority care must be kept strictly apart in different institutions depending on why they are there. Those merely in care because their parents cant look after them should be protected from the influence of young offenders.

(d) Do not allow people in the public gallery in our crown courts to see the faces of the jury. Offer witnesses and victims more help with resettlement and removal to nearby towns well in advance of the release date of someone against whom they gave evidence.

(e) Let us put more policing into high unemployment areas. Extend the coverage of CCTV.

(f) Increase the number of stations or the size and capacity of custody suites in our busy inner city police stations. Blaming red tape (and the Police and Criminal Evidence Act) is not the answer. It is the queue to get in and start the process that causes the delay, not the process itself

(g) We are going to have to look at new ideas for prisons. We should look seriously at where they are placed and how they are run.

(h) Create a large number of stipendiary magistrates - now known as District Judges - to carry out the work of magistrates court in our inner cities and major towns. Allow a stipendiary to sit with at least one and preferably two lay magistrates to make findings on facts in cases. We need at least five in Middlesbrough.

NIGEL BODDY

Cleveland Avenue,

Darlington.

Community who?

Sir, - With reference to last week's leading article, bemoaning the lack of visible policing, it was interesting to note that, when members of Worsall Parish Council were invited to nominate their community policeman for an award, they didn't know who their community policeman was, or indeed, if they actually had one.

ANN ALLISON

Worsall Grange Farm,

Low Worsall.

Doing well

Sir, - Yet more evidence that Britain is doing well outside the euro.

New figures from the Office for National Statistics for car production in Britain between January and May show a rise of 17pc compared to the same period a year ago. The number of cars produced for export in Britain between January and May this year was 22pc higher than the same period in 2001.

These figures prove that British car manufacturers can be successful outside the euro. Compare this to Germany - where the number of cars produced between January and May this year was down by 12pc on a year ago. The figure for cars produced for export was down by 18pc.

The British economy is doing well outside the euro and business is benefiting from the economic stability we have achieved. The quickest way to ruin this would be to give up control over our economy by replacing the pound.

JOHN ELLIOTT

Chairman, Business for Sterling North East