Crime is up in the Thames Valley by five per cent, according to the latest Home Office figures - and the region's officers have the worst crime-solving record in England and Wales.

But Thames Valley Police chiefs last night refuted Government statistics - and argued that the overall rise in crime during the past year was nearer 2.1 per cent.

A Thames Valley Police spokesman said: "The Home Office has sampled statistics and this has not provided a wholly-accurate picture." Yesterday, Thames Valley's Chief Constable Charles Pollard attended a Downing Street summit to discuss the latest figures.

He promised to try to improve the force's performance in crime-solving but pointed out that catching criminals was only one method of reducing crime.

"Someone who has been burgled and the crime has been solved may have preferred not to have been burgled in the first place," he said. Last year, the force's officers only cleared up 43,465 out of 176,477 recorded crimes - 24.63 per cent. That put Thames Valley Police well below the national average of 29 per cent in the crime-solving category - and bottom of 43 forces.

Mr Pollard added that a two per cent increase in overall crime was 'disappointing', considering crime had fallen in the Thames Valley over the past six years. "Overall crime has been down by one quarter and this is among the best ten forces in England and Wales," he said. Mr Pollard said the rise in crime, and the drop in the number of minor crimes solved, could be attributed to major demonstrations at the Newbury by-pass and at Hillgrove cat farm near Witney, which closed earlier this year.

Story date: Wednesday 13 October

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