TOP Wiltshire councillors have accused the police of damaging the area’s reputation by allowing television cameras to give a distorted picture of its towns.

Philip Whitehead, who represents Urchfont, near Devizes, and is a member of Wiltshire Council’s cabinet, rang police and crime commissioner Angus Macpherson to tell him that the Channel 4 show 999: What’s Your Emergency? could have a disastrous effect on Wiltshire’s economy.

He said: “The programme makers would have had hours and hours of content and they weren’t going to show the bits that had police officers enjoying the beautiful countryside. It was always going to depict the nastier side of life, such as racism, and that is not going to help us attract new business to the county.

“We are now going to have to work even harder to get investment. It would be true to say it was a robust conversation. His opinion was very different to mine.”

Cllr Whitehead spoke at Devizes Area Board to register his upset at the show. He said: “It is giving a false impression of Wiltshire and proving detrimental to its reputation.”

Wiltshire’s deputy leader John Thomson was equally upset and said he was surprised and disappointed that the council had not been consulted or even told about the documentary in advance.

He said: “I don’t recognise the Wiltshire shown. The county has been portrayed incorrectly. I think the police were being rather naive when they entered into this.”

He is also worried about safeguarding and the way vulnerable young adults and children were filmed. He said: “Their faces may have been pixelated but many people would still have recognised them. We had no idea who was going to appear until the show was aired so we could not prepare in advance for any fallout.”

This week Mr Macpherson was unrepentant. He said: “I believe that 999: What’s Your Emergency? is doing an important job in giving television viewers an insight into the challenges and dilemmas that our police officers and staff face, day and night. The series also demonstrates the wide variety of incidents that are dealt with by the call handlers and officers, and the changing nature of police work.”

Assistant chief constable Paul Mills said: “The documentary offers an excellent opportunity to inform the public on the wide breadth of issues facing emergency services personnel, as well as highlighting the dedicated work that goes on to the keep the public safe.”

The show returns at the end of October for 20 episodes.