It is commendably civic-minded of Councillor Tim Crowther to give a £100-a-month boost to the Crimestoppers reward fund in Heckmondwike by forgoing the allowance he receives as Spen Valley Area Committee chairman. Crimestoppers is an excellent initiative which fights vandalism, damage and crime by inviting members of the public to provide information anonymously in return for a reward if it leads to the arrest and conviction of a criminal.

Obviously the more money there is in the pot, the higher the rewards can be and the greater the incentive for people to pass on useful details to the police. Councillor Crowther hopes that his example will be followed by other individuals and businesses who feel equally strongly about the need to give a boost to the battle against crime in and around their town. He suggests, too, that if more money comes in it could be used to pay for additional security systems as well.

This is in a town where repeated requests by the Chamber of Trade for a CCTV system have been turned down on the grounds that there is not enough crime to merit its introduction. Yet there is apparently enough crime for someone like Councillor Crowther to take this unusual step.

Any efforts to beef up the fight against criminals and deter them by increasing the chances of detection are to be welcomed, obviously. Yet it has to be asked whether, in a country in which people pay a high level of taxation for public services which include the maintenance of law and order, they should then be expected to pay again, voluntarily, to get the job done properly.