West Yorkshire police will have its budget cut - despite crime being at its lowest for seven years.

Chief Constable Graham Moore said Government funds would be cut by two per cent for the next three years, starting with this financial year 1998-99.

He was presenting his report for 1997-98 at Wakefield's County Hall to the West Yorkshire Police Authority, which has published its own report.

The chief constable said the cash cuts would not affect the service his officers provided and pledged to "deliver the same or even better performance despite having less money".

As well as crime being at it lowest level for seven years, recorded crime had fallen by 6.3 per cent, to less than 250,00 offences in 1997-98 - 19 per cent less than five years ago, he said.

House burglaries were down more than 16 per cent to 36,923, with one-in-three burglaries solved, although the Odsal division's figure of 6,300 reported burglaries was the highest in the force.

Arrest for drug offences were at record levels, with 6,900 in the 1997-98 period, 12 per cent more than the target set by the West Yorkshire Police Authority.

But the authority's chairman, Councillor Neil Taggart, said that despite this "blip" his members were very happy with the service being provided by the region's police force.

He said: "The really goods news is that crime in West Yorkshire is now at its lowest level for seven years.

Chief Constable Moore said next year's top priority target areas would include a reduction in drug offences and burglaries.

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