IT is a founding principle of policing that the test of police efficiency is low to absent crime, rather than police being seen to get tough on criminals.
Sussex Police made crimes disappear without getting tough on anyone, however, with the chief constable admitting the force was under-recording violent crimes until inspectors recently demanded a change.
That is worrying enough, but must be have been far more infuriating for the victims of violence who phoned police only to be told their ordeal did not reach the threshold of a crime.
Chief Constable Giles York is now having to explain the slightly confusing situation in which a rise in recorded violent crimes apparently does not mean they are actually increasing.
Recorded violent crimes have increased by 33% over the past year according to official figures, but police promise the streets are no more dangerous than before. Things would surely have been a lot less complicated if reports had been taken more seriously all along.
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