New target for police confidence

Jacqui Smith says the police are accountable to the people

Public confidence in policing across England and Wales must increase significantly by 2012 under new plans outlined by Jacqui Smith.

All forces must improve confidence in their local crime and disorder fighting strategies by a minimum of 12% over the period, the home secretary said.

Nationally, a single "confidence target" of 60% - to be measured by annual crime surveys - has been set.

The Conservatives say red tape and bureaucracy are hampering the police.

'Challenging target'

They have called for the abolition of all national policing targets "that waste police time".

Labour says it is scrapping all top-down targets apart from the 60% confidence goal, freeing up more time for officers to police the streets.

Confidence levels in the police - as measured by the British Crime Survey - vary widely among the 43 forces in England and Wales.

Currently the national average is 45% with only nine forces scoring above 50% and several below 40%.

"I have always been clear that this target needs to be challenging if we are to see real change in public confidence in the police," Ms Smith said.

"By 2012 I want to see at least 60% of people confident that the police are addressing what matters locally."

The target is part of a "policing pledge" introduced last year, detailing what the public should expect from the police at both national and local level.

This includes minimum standards for response times, the publication of crime maps and that the majority of members of police authorities will be elected by 2010.