THANKS to Tony Giblin for his invitation to attend the Bury North Police and Community Consultative Group meeting (Yours Truly, August 24).

I am sorry, Mr Giblin, but I have been to my share of these events over the years and found them to be two hours of whitewash and waffle. Concerned residents who voice straight questions about policing in their area, or the lack of it, are met with the inevitable snooty responses, risible answers, total evasion and pleas of ignorance. The chairmen, whose job it is to represent the public, seem to bend over backwards to speak as police publicity officers. It is hardly surprising that the attendance at these events is so low. I seem to remember that at one Bury North session last year only one member of the public attended.

I prefer to raise my points in the local press, which is keenly bought and read by citizens who look for facts, not spin doctoring. Which brings me to a point raised in the recent letter from PC Steve Williams who complained about the relationship between the police and the courts. Unfortunately, he did not spell out in detail what this meant and I have been considering it for some time.

My only interpretation is that he is unhappy that magistrates and judges do not automatically accept the police's version of events any longer and prefer to ask detailed questions. The coming of the Crown Prosecution Service and the Police and Criminal Evidence Act bring higher standards of public scrutiny. If the police are unhappy with these facts of life, they must ask who created this situation.

COP THAT