Migrant crime same as wider population

LONDON (Reuters) - A police study has found that the influx of immigrants from eastern Europe has not fuelled a rise in crime, the Guardian reported on Wednesday.

The report will be presented to Home Secretary Jacqui Smith on Thursday at a meeting of chief constables, the paper said.

The study found that despite some alarmist headlines, the offending rates among mainly Polish, Romanian and Bulgarian communities are in line with the rest of the population.

But it said new migrants were more likely to commit certain offences, and had caused tensions in some areas because of their arrival in unexpectedly large numbers.

Polish migrants were linked to drink-driving offences, while there had been problems in London with Romanian adults using children for petty robberies.

"While overall this country has accommodated this huge influx with little rise in community tension, in some areas sheer numbers, resentment and misunderstanding, have created problems," the report said.

It said the areas facing most difficulties included Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire, where migrant workers were attracted by local farm work, as well as Slough.

A number of police forces have called for more money to deal with the extra demands posted by the increase in local population, the paper said.

(Reporting by Tim Castle, editing by Kate Kelland)