NEW police figures show recorded crime in North Yorkshire soared by 15 per cent in the last year.

But the force's deputy chief constable said today that the rise from 51,551 recorded crimes to 59,149, between April 2001 and March 2002 was "inevitable".

York's police chief, Chief Superintendent John Lacy, exclusively told the Evening Press two weeks ago of a 17 per cent surge in recorded crime in the York and Selby area over last year.

Today York Liberal Democrats demanded a probe into what they said were inadequate police resources in the city.

The group wants City of York Council's new Local Affairs Scrutiny Board to investigate, after Chief Supt Lacy accepted in our interview that York and Selby were under-resourced compared to other areas of North Yorkshire based on demands on police time.

The latest county figures show burglaries up 18 per cent and violent crimes up 15 per cent.

Sex crimes increased from 289 to 347 and criminal damage - one of the crimes reclassified under the new Home Office rules - was up 25 per cent, now accounting for 20 per cent of all the country's crime. Theft increased by ten per cent and robbery by 56 per cent - from 186 to 291 incidents. Drugs offences went up from 1,259 to 1,492 but the number cleared up rose from 1,272 to 1,372. The total number of crimes detected fell from 15,514 to 15,344.

Home Office changes mean crimes are now recorded on the basis of victims' reports. Officers no longer need evidence to prove an offence occurred, as previously. Deputy Chief Constable Peter expects that the changes, coupled with previous ones governing the recording of harrasment, criminal damage and domestic violence, would see the rising figures trend continue through the next year.

But, he said, this would give police a clearer picture of crime and the ability to target resources more effectively.

He added: "It is also necessary to look behind the statistics. At first glance, our detection rate may appear to be static, but set in context against the almost unprecedented major investigations of last year, it is actually very impressive."

Updated: 11:07 Tuesday, May 21, 2002