Madam,

Re ‘Unacceptable that our police helicopter is being lost’, Cambrian News Letters, last week.

Your correspondent can be optimistic about the future of police air cover for Dyfed-Powys.

The agreement I have reached with the police force and the National Police Air Service (NPAS) will mean a service available 24 hours a day rather than the present 12 hours.

We will no longer face large, unexpected maintenance periods which put our lone helicopter out of action. We are saving £275,000, which will help me keep officers on our streets.Yes, some response times will be down from January, but Ceredigion will continue to get the coverage it needs.

I would like the helicopter to be based permanently at Pembrey but I am pleased NPAS have recognised our rural nature and made a significant concession by retaining the base.

Responsible leadership of these critical services requires thought and determination, not hysteria and finger-pointing. The public deserve it. I am determined to deliver it.

In the meantime, I have put 30 more police officers on the streets of Dyfed-Powys and they’re spending tens of thousands more hours on the beat thanks to investment in IT. Crime and antisocial behaviour are down.

Yours etc

Christopher Salmon

Police and Crime Commissioner for Dyfed-Powys.