THE police scheme to reduce the number of non-essential 999 calls is proving a success in Wirral, according to the latest figures.

The Wirral call centre in Wallasey reported 166 fewer 999 calls since the February 24 launch of the initiative.

Chief Inspector Cliff Walker, who is running the campaign, said: "Although it's early days, I am very encouraged by the improvement. Early indications suggest that things seem to be improving slowly but surely, and I am hopeful that this trend will continue."

Converted for the new archive on 13 March 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.