WILTSHIRE police have scrapped the drugs squad which covered the north and west of the county amid fears of escalating substance abuse and drug-related crime.

The drugs unit, based at Melksham, consisted of three officers, dwindling to one at the end of last year. It was set up over five years ago and the force prided itself on being one of the only counties to have one.

But the unit has been replaced by an intelligence team which includes just one dedicated drugs officer.

Temporary Chief Supt Amanda Evely, who is in charge of C Division which covers north and west Wiltshire, said: "Because of the National Intelligence model we are running a different system. Each proactive unit has one drugs officer and a group of officers dealing with all intelligence across the division which includes crimes related to drugs."

The new National Intelligence Model means that more resources have to be put towards getting better information on a number of major crimes such as burglaries and car crime.

Drug arrests are not a key performance indicator, so are not taken into account when judging the effectiveness of a police force.

Chief Supt Evely said: "Government target issues change over time and also acknowledge that in this area we have to have a local policing plan for drugs.

"It remains a divisional priority. It would be inaccurate to say that police are putting less resources into drug investigation than they were before."

A support group is confident that Wiltshire police can continue their effective fight against substance abuse even though the drug squad has been scrapped.

Helen Meikle, who is the chairman of Parents Against Drugs and Solvent Abuse, based in Warminster, said: "I do not think it is going down their priority list, I just think they are looking more at the overall picture."

Police spokesman Steve Coxhead said Wiltshire was acting in line with every other force in the country and the aim was better intelligence and targeting of offenders.

He said: "Wiltshire has no choice but to do this. Any talk of disbanding or watering down could not be further from the truth.

"It means the better use of resources and the whole purpose is to achieve even better results. The public should not even remotely think we are not as interested in drugs, or that drugs are a low priority. The opposite is true."

Last year, the Wiltshire Times and Chippenham News revealed how drug pushers were aiming to hook children as young as 12.

A 16-year-old boy from Calne appeared before magistrates last Friday and admitted the possession of 40 ecstasy pills worth £50.

In November, the Wiltshire Times and Chippenham News revealed that drug-related crime is on the increase in the county because dealers from Bristol and London see it as a soft touch.

A police crackdown in the two cities has forced pushers of Class A drugs to target places like Wiltshire and the criminal investigation department has warned of a huge influx of heroin and crack cocaine into the area. The problem was highlighted when 39 people were arrested in two of the county's biggest drug operations Operation Claire and Operation Cirrus.