USE of controversial stop and search powers by police in Wiltshire has fallen, new figures have revealed.

And the cut back in shake-downs by officers has led to fewer arrests of criminal suspects.

According to the Home Office, county police used the measures on 3,803 separate occasions in 2002/2003. That compares with 5,979 in the previous year.

This comes despite a general national trend of officers relying more and more on street stops to catch criminals.

The 2,176 fewer checks in Wiltshire led to 98 fewer arrests. That means a 36 per cent fall in use of spot checks resulted in a 13 per cent drop in arrests.

The figures also reveal local officers use search powers far less than some comparable forces.

Cheshire police recorded 10,507 stops in 2003, more in one year than Wiltshire used in two years, even though the Home Office views the two force areas as similar. Stop and search measures have come under fire, with critics claiming they give officers a free hand to harass the public. There has been particular concern because members of ethnic minorities are far more likely to be

stopped than whites.

The majority of searches by Wiltshire police were of drug suspects, with more than 1,000 stopped. Hundreds more people were searched on suspicion of carrying a gun or other offensive weapon. Chief Inspector Rick Wright, of Wiltshire Police Crime Reduction, said the policy of the constabulary was that stop and searches were not used if they were unlikely to lead to an arrest.

He said: "This ensures an effective and intelligence led approach to the use of these powers. Figures should be considered in the context that Wiltshire is one of the safest counties in which to live, work or visit, and the performance of the Wiltshire Constabulary in respect of both crime reduction and detections are generally high.

"In comparing figures the normal method is to compare performance against the similar 'family of forces'. Cheshire is not one of Wiltshire's 'family of forces' and this comparison is therefore misleading.

"Wiltshire Constabulary commenced an organisational review along with partners including the Wiltshire and Swindon Race Equality Councils, several months ago to progress these matters.

"The use of stop and search should be selective and based upon reasonableg rounds, inappropriate use does not serve any purpose and impacts on our aims in 'Keeping Wiltshire Safe' and policing by consent."