THE HEAD of Hampshire police has pledged to fight the fear of crime.

In his first report since becoming chief constable in September last year, Paul Kernaghan stressed that Hampshire and the Isle of Wight were safe places to live.

His claims comes despite the latest figures, which show that violent crime has risen within the county by 21 per cent in the past year.

The annual report, which covers the financial year to March 31, is presented as providing an insight into the personality of the force.

It contains a month-by-month account of what the county's law enforcers have been up to.

In his front page statement, Mr Kernaghan praised the impact of closed circuit TV cameras in assisting police in apprehending criminals, referring to schemes as "friendly uncles" rather than "big brother".

And he said Southampton City Council's safety survey would help in the formulation of a strategy to tackle residents' concerns, which include reducing youth crime and nuisance, increasing bobbies on the beat and helping families reduce the risk of their children becoming involved in crime.

But despite Mr Kernaghan's reassurances, recently released government figures show a 5.4 per cent rise in crime in Hampshire.

Reported violent offences have rocketed from 14,352 in 1998/99 to 17,494 in 1999/2000 - a rise of 21 per cent.

And the force's detection rate for this category of crimes, which include sexual attacks and robbery has fallen from 85.5 per cent to 81.1 per cent during the same period.

Reported racist incidents have also more than doubled from 271 to 654.

While the total number of house burglaries is down by 54 per cent since 1992/93 - making the risk of being burgled in the Hampshire Constabulary area half the average for England and Wales - the percentage detected has fallen from 29.6 per cent in 1996/7 to 14.6 per cent in 1999/2000.

But Mr Kernaghan remained upbeat.

He wrote: "This is my first annual report since becoming chief constable in September last year, and high on my agenda are initiatives not only to reduce crime, but to reduce the fear of crime in our communities.

"Personally, I am convinced that fear of crime is a major element in reducing the quality of life of both individuals and communities.

"All crime is distressing and I know that statistics are of little comfort to victims.

"It is a fact that Hampshire and the Isle of Wight are extremely safe places in which to live, and we are committed to making them even safer.

"However, one mindless mugging of an elderly lady is one too many - and it is right that the media should report it."

Last week the government allocated 400 officers to the county, in addition to the 133 already promised. The force's net expenditure after contributions to reserve funds was £196.54 million. It costs the taxpayer 31p a day.

The annual report will soon be available from public libraries and police stations.

Converted for the new archive on 25 January 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.