POLICE REFORM

I AM not given to seeking publicity and would much rather concentrate on providing the best possible service to the people of County Durham and Darlington.

However, I would like to put the record straight about police reform so far as the Durham Constabulary is concerned.

The Prime Minister was right when he said in Parliament on March 13 that much in the Reform Programme is supported by the majority of police officers. Many of the initiatives have been sought by the service over the years and it is very much to the credit of this Government that it has addressed those issues and produced ideas to develop this great service of ours.

It is also true that some of them will require detailed discussion and I have every reason to believe that that will happen.

For example, the issue of street wardens causes excitement. Your readers will be aware that we have street wardens in County Durham and Darlington - in fact the Sedgefield Community Force was one of the first such schemes.

If one reflects over years of the importance of park keepers, school caretakers, school crossing patrols and the like, which provided some form of social cohesion, the majority of whom are now missing from our streets and parks, then clearly that gap needs to be filled. It ought not to be filled by highly-trained and experienced police officers.

There is a role for street wardens, but, in my view, they should be employed by local authorities to work alongside the police so there can be no suggestion of two tier policing.

The Prime Minister is also right when he says that such wardens cannot be imposed on a force but can only be deployed with the agreement of the local chief constable and the police authority. Such a proposal ought not to be rejected out of hand. There are many other similar initiatives that will provide for better service for our people.

The major problem is around pay and conditions. Clearly some archaic police regulations do need to be updated and I am in total support of that, as I know are a majority of officers.

What is an issue are the proposals on pay and I have been publicly critical of them. They are divisive, will set officer against officer and, in my view, have not been clearly thought through. In essence, it was a great pity that pay issues formed part of the Reform Programme for the implementation of the reform proposals, are not consequent upon pay issues, and they should be dealt with separately.

I have made proposals about how I see that being progressed and I hope we can sit around a table now with the Government and produce the best possible arrangements for our staff.

I want the people in County Durham and Darlington to know that the majority of recommendations in the Reform Programme will be to the benefit of those we serve and are supported by the majority of officers subject, of course, to further consultation and clarity of purpose.

Unfortunately, the pay issues were rushed and ill-considered and all staff associations need to engage with the Government to provide the best possible deal for our officers.

I have every reason to suppose that can be achieved if we enter the discussions with an open mind. - George Hedges, Chief Constable, Durham Constabulary.

HUNTING

EVEN if a majority of those living in rural areas were in favour of a ban on hunting with dogs, which is clearly not the case as the results of opinion polls are continually telling us, there are many more important things that the Government should be concentrating its efforts on.

If a bill to ban hunting with dogs were to become law, it would undoubtedly increase the workload of our over-stretched police force, and further deprive the already beleaguered countryside of jobs and the money generated by hunting.

We did hope that we were going to get the "joined up government" that we were promised by New Labour. - Angela Vaux, Barton, North Yorkshire.

ALTHOUGH never having lived anywhere but in the country, hunting has never appealed to me, and I think the controversy over it is more political than humane.

Having seen a fox dead in a snare after struggling for most of the night before strangling itself, I realised, for it, death by the hounds would have been more merciful. If hunting is banned, how many more foxes will receive this fate?

During the 1950s, I often transported horses for owners to meets. I would follow them rather than hang about for the day, but never once saw them catch a fox.

People I have talked to who have followed hunts for most of their lives all agree that, when the fox has entertained them for a good spell and eluded them by going to ground, he should be left to fight another day.

It is no use denying cruelty then calling for the terrier man. - Douglas Punchard, Kirkbymoorside.

RETIREMENT

I HAVE read about the Government's plans to raise the retirement age from 65 to 70.

This may be a good idea for anyone who enjoys their employment, but, for me, I must go to a factory and work on the shopfloor in an engineering environment. It is dirty, dangerous and mind-blowingly boring and I can hardly wait until I will be 65 to leave.

The only thing which keeps me going there is the necessity to bring home the bacon and, were it not that I am the sole wage earner for my wife and myself, I would be out of the place tomorrow and doing something more enjoyable.

Unfortunately, at my age and with my lack of qualifications, there is little opportunity in this area for restructuring my career. Unless dire need forces me, state benefits are not an option for me.

But the thought of working at the place I do for an extra five years fills me with horror. - K Orton, Ferryhill Station.