J. C. SMITH (Your Letters, September 5) accused me of misinformation in regard to police clear-up rates and, yes, I have to admit that I was wrong. The figure to August 2003 was not the 30 per cent I quoted but, according to the Home Office, 23.5 per cent.

This figure is not only abysmally low but should be an embarrassment to the police.

Unwittingly, she made my point for me. The majority of recorded crime is not classed as "serious" in much the same way that the majority of A&E patients are not in "serious" need of immediate attention, as was ultimately the case when Ms Smith took her toddler to Fairfield.

I was merely suggesting that before complaining about the A&E department through the Bury Times, Ms Smith might have reflected on the efficiency of her own organisation. After all, comparison with the NHS is a measure by which the police could only ever be second-best.

G. R. JONES