Otley councillors are demanding a refund in their police support spending - after Leeds took over the funding.

Last year, the town council handed over £5,000 in matched funding to pay for Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) and greater police presence in the town.

The measures, dubbed Operation Aberdare and half-funded by the now scrapped Otley and Wharfedale Community Involvement Team (CIT), included the issuing of Anti-social behaviour Orders (ASBOs) and the threat of a dispersal order on trouble spot Otley Bus Station.

The operation was declared a success by the area's community policing team, but some Otley councillors were unhappy with the level of communication between the police and the council.

Now, with Leeds City Council paying for two full time PCSOs covering Otley and Yeadon since the start of the year, councillors are looking for a refund.

At Monday's meeting of the Executive Committee, Councillor Norman Harrison said he believed the council should get a refund from the police.

"We're only three quarters of the way through the year and if they've not spent the money then we should get it back."

Committee chairman Coun Jim Spencer added: "I have to say that the whole council was a little bit dissatisfied with the whole thing, the reporting back we got from the police was never very good."

The council originally asked for regular reports from the police to find out exactly where the money was being spent, but despite a couple of visits from the inspector in charge of the community team, many councillors remained dissatisfied.

Coun Gerard Francis added that he would also like to see a break down of where all the money was spent.

Coun John Eveleigh said after the meeting that he had never agreed with the way the money had been allocated to the police.

"There was never any proper service agreement, it was very much an open ended agreement and I don't see how the police can be criticised for it."

l Political parties are targeting crime in the run up to the general election.

Both the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives are holding meetings and leafleting people across Otley and Yeadon about crime and policing.

Meanwhile, a Labour councillor has said crime is not a massive problem in the area.

A meeting on law and order was due to be held yesterday by the Conservatives in Bramhope and a

second one at Otley Civic Centre tonight from 7pm.

Tonight's meeting, which is intended to outline the party's latest law and order proposals, is part of a series of events being staged by the party's parliamentary candidate for Leeds North West, George Lee.

The Liberal Democrats are also targeting crime and have sent out questionnaires to householders in Otley and Yeadon asking for their opinions.

Coun Greg Mulholland, prospective parliamentary candidate for the area, said it was an opportunity for people to put forward their opinions.

But leader of Otley Town Council's Labour group, Coun John Eveleigh said he believed crime in the area was not such a big problem, although the fear of crime was.