Crime has dropped in Northern Ireland, Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde reported yesterday.
The PSNI chief said April and May saw an overall decrease of 10 per cent in crimes reported on the same period last year. Some 19,194 offences were recorded, he told a public session of the Policing Board in Belfast.
His announcement was made following publication of a survey which found that public confidence in, and satisfaction with, the police service were rising steadily.
However, the board refused to endorse for the time being Mr Orde's plans to close up to 17 rural police stations across Northern Ireland, half of them in Fermanagh.
At another Policing Board meeting in Derry a month ago, the Chief Constable flagged his proposal to cut costs and boost police efficiency by centralising policing services in key police stations.
But unionists in particular are questioning his plans to drastically cut the number of staffed police stations across the North.
Mr Orde pressed ahead yesterday, arguing that crime was falling since he succeeded Sir Ronnie Flanagan in 2002.
He said domestic burglary had fallen 12 per cent and violent crime was down 12.3 per cent. He said his officers' tactics of targeting crime "hotspots", questioning repeat suspects, and high-visibility patrolling were paying off.
Public confidence in the PSNI is rising and key performance targets have been met, according to a report published yesterday by the Policing Board.
Some 83 per cent of respondents, up eight points since last autumn, say they have degrees of confidence in the PSNI's ability to police Northern Ireland.
Of those who were in direct contact with the police over the past 12 months, 73 per cent were satisfied with their treatment.