I WANT to pay tribute to the work of Greater Manchester Police in conducting the murder inquiry following the death of Tariq Javed.

The police acted swiftly in pursuing the leads they had been given and secured a number of arrests very shortly after the murder had been committed.

They consulted closely with relevant community leaders and kept elected representatives well informed with the progress of their inquiries.

Equally as important, the local police officers under the leadership of Chief Superintendent Hollowood paid particular attention to the needs of the widow and children of the victim. They also played an important role in ensuring that the understandable anger of the local Asian community was not exploited by extremist elements calling for retaliation.

The conduct of the inquiry, particularly the close links developed by the police with the local community, was an example of how such inquiries should be conducted and provides a model for police forces elsewhere in Britain to follow in dealing with such dreadful incidents.

DAVID CHAYTOR

MP for Bury North.