The decision by West Yorkshire police to begin recruiting again is good news on several fronts. The two-year freeze, forced by a shortage of cash, has put a stop on some important plans. Among these is a move towards meeting the Home Secretary's target for the recruitment of officers from the ethnic minorities.

Now the force will be able to start to move towards those targets. There has already been substantial interest shown by would-be recruits from the ethnic minorities. The many applications received can now start to be processed.

It is reassuring, though, that the Chief Constable, Mr Graham Moore, has stressed that while the force is keen to recruit people from non-white groups, it also wants the best people for the job, whatever their background. The search for excellence must be put above everything else when candidates are considered.

Equally important is Mr Moore's assurance that recruits will encounter no problems with intimidation. That is doubly vital in the case of women, particularly from the ethnic minorities, which the force is keen to recruit so that it can better match the racial and sexual mix of the community it serves.

But as far as the general public are concerned, the best news of all is that the thaw on recruitment, achieved by making commendable efficiency savings of £500,000, will eventually put a further 60 officers into what the Chief Constable has described as "front-line policing". If by that he means bobbies on the beat, that is what so many people want to see to help defeat the fear of crime which is undermining their peace of mind.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.