A NEW scheme is aiming to drastically cut the time police spend on irrelevant calls to the 999 emergency number.

The 'Firm But Fair' initiative aims to free up more operators to deal with real emergencies and make maximum use of police resources.

It comes hot on the heels of the campaign to encourage more people to use the 872-5050 number for minor police enquiries and is hoping to let more operators help people who really do need police assistance.

Emergency operators answer a huge amount of calls everyday on the 999 number which are not police related and can include a variety of requests from callers.

Indeed one such call to the 999 number recently asked if a police car was available to give the person calling a lift as they had missed the last bus and didn't have enough money for a taxi!

Now police are hoping to change the system for the better with the help of independent company Scoot - who will take calls directed to them from operators if it is a non-police matter.

The company provide information on a freephone number on over two million businesses and services across the UK and it is hoped that it's help can relieve the weight of calls to the 999 line.

Chief Superintendent Bill Morrell, who leads GMP's Operational Support Section, said: "Traditionally the police service is seen as somewhere to turn to if you need help but in a growing number of cases the queries we receive are not matters which are dealt with by the police and this new procedure will help us to ensure that we give the best service we can."

Scoot are available 24 hours a day on 0800 192 192 at no charge and can provide information on a whole host of services from plumbers to locksmiths.

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