Jo Coles, Deputy Mayor for Policing, Fire and Crime scrutinised the performance of North Yorkshire Police in the latest online public meeting last week. The session covered the latest crime figures for York and North Yorkshire, plans for live facial recognition and progress on Operation Snap.
Anti social behaviour is down 5.6% across North Yorkshire in the last year with crime overall down 2.8%. Bicycle theft has fallen 30%, shoplifting is down 10% and vehicle crime is down 19%.
Robbery has increased, however, partly linked to greater use of illegal e-bikes, and North Yorkshire Police outlined the steps they have been taking in seizing and crushing bikes used to commit crime.
Chief Constable Tim Forber reiterated however:
"This is and remains the safest county in England in terms of crime per capita. And we're determined to keep it that way."
Later on in the meeting, Jo Coles, Deputy Mayor for Policing, Fire and Crime called for clearer reporting on violence against women and girls, which can currently be difficult to separate out from general crime statistics. Domestic violence increased by 6.5% between April and June, representing an extra 108 reported crimes.
Chief Constable Tim Forber said:
"There's plenty of evidence that suggests that people suffer domestic abuse and violence on many, many occasions before they report it to the police. I want more people to report it."
The Deputy Mayor sought assurances from the Chief Constable regarding public safety concerns regarding Government proposals to accommodate asylum seekers at RAF Linton on Ouse.
Additional information on representations made by the Mayor and Deputy Mayor can be found here: Proposals for Linton-on-Ouse 2026 > York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority
North Yorkshire Police also set out their plans to introduce live facial recognition in North Yorkshire. DCI Jez Bartley explained that deployments will be targeted, time limited and intelligence led, with upcoming deployments and results published on a dedicated webpage.
He confirmed that any image which does not match the watch list is deleted almost instantly and gave clear assurances for how the technology has been designed to avoid bias and provided with clear, independent safeguards and oversight.
Full details of the assurances sought by the Deputy Mayor on these proposals can be found here: Assurances on the use of Live Facial Recognition technology in York and North Yorkshire > York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority
During the Online Public Meeting, the Chief Constable also confirmed that reports through Operation Snap have jumped from 784 in 2022 to 2,962 in 2025, and numbers keep rising. The scheme has been moved to the North Yorkshire Police's desktop investigation team, aimed at providing more prosecutions and faster turnaround.
Chief Constable Tim Forber said:
"We have too many people who are killed on the road in this county. It is a fact of the matter, and one person being killed on the road is too many."
The Online Public Meeting concluded with questions from members of the public.
The next online public meeting is with North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service on 17 September, followed by North Yorkshire Police on 15 October.
At the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Panel the same week the Deputy Mayor outlined the importance of clear, non-judgemental reporting processes for victims of violence against women and girls, in accordance with the Victim's Code.
The Deputy Mayor also reiterated the importance of safeguards around Live Facial Recognition at the Police, Fire and Crime Panel, stating the need to balance the needs of North Yorkshire Police to make use of new technology with the rights and entitlements of the public.
Full papers from this meeting can be found here: Agenda for North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Panel on Thursday, 16 July 2026, 10.30 am | North Yorkshire Council
