Crime in Devon and Cornwall may not fall at all this year, Chief Constable Shaun Sawyer admitted yesterday.
Mr Sawyer made the admission during a public meeting of performance and accountability board instituted by Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Tony Hogg.
It was the first time they had discussed an issue which was the source of tension in their relationship, and their backroom teams, last month.
The fall-out followed confirmation that the force was unlikely to meet the modest 2% crime reduction target set by Mr Hogg because of a surge in offences during the summer, one of the busiest in recent years.
"Compared to 12 months ago crime today is down 3.8%, during the PCCs period of office," Mr Sawyer told the meeting at County Hall in Truro.
"It is a rolling 12 months and the impact of the summer spike will grow greater and greater."
Mr Sawyer said he couldn't "undo history" saying the past was "a place of reference, not residence" and that "lessons would be learned".
He added: "By the end of the financial and performance year it may well go to about 0% but after next summer I would expect it to fall again."
Last month, Mr Hogg said he was "seriously concerned" about the force's performance after the rise in offences over the summer months.
He described it as an "important watershed" in his relationship with Mr Sawyer and his role in publicly holding the Chief Constable to account.
Yesterday, Mr Hogg again raised the issue of the force's position in national league tables on crime, where it is now 12th from a high of fourth.
Mr Sawyer said while he was "cognisant" of the tables it was important not to "chase figures" which could lead to "unethical behaviour about recording crimes and how we respond to victims".
Figures released by the Office of National Statistics last month showed recorded crime up to the end of June 2013 fell by 6%.
More up-to-date figures, published simultaneously by the force, revealed that progress had now stalled.
Major falls were seen in house burglary, down 14.1% to 3,830 crimes; robbery, down 15.3% to 376; theft of vehicles, which fell by 12.5% to 1,111 and incidents of criminal damage, which dropped from 17,001 to 15,119, or 11.1%.
Shoplifting, though, has increased by 5.2%, from 7,308 to 7,685 crimes, amid concerns that increasing incidents of theft are being driven by the Government's welfare reforms.
In previous years, the force has claimed that increases in drugs offences represented successful operations against drug dealers and addicts. So far this year, drugs offences are down 7.2% to 4,463 crimes.
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