PEOPLE should trust Worcester's new spy cameras will keep them safe from crime, says the leader of the city council.

Councillor Simon Geraghty says he wants people to walk the streets of the city without fear and has appealed to the public to have confidence in the newly-revamped spy camera system.

It is now three months since all cameras in the city were upgraded to high-tech types to make them among the best in the country.

Coun Geraghty said: "What we need to defeat is the perception of the fear of crime in Worcester - many people think about what might happen to them, rather than what probably won't happen to them.

"I have been out in Worcester at night and think the reassurance value for residents is now there.

"I have seen the new cameras and the zoom capacity is so much better under the digital system.

"Certainly, I would say safety is a key theme of the council, and we have made a significant commitment to it."

All 63 spy cameras in Worcester - nicknamed metal mickeys' after the classic TV series of the same name - are now state-of-the-art digital ones following the revamp last October.

As the Worcester News reported at the time, the BBC provoked outrage from the city council and Worcester MP Mike Foster by reporting the cameras were out of order for three weeks for the upgrade.

The city council invested £85,000 in the upgrade, and also pays yearly maintenance costs of about £150,000 to keep them running.

Both the city council and the police insist it is too early to see what impact the new cameras have had on cutting crime.

A spokesman for Worcester police said: "It has only been three months since the new cameras have been in use after we switched them all off to allow for the upgrade to take place.

"Because of that it is early days to see if the new cameras have had any impact on crime in Worcester."