Police calls were among those clogging emergency lines

Administrative calls by policemen on emergency lines had been contributing to a clog of the system before they were found out and ordered to stop.

Police Commissioner John Rizzo said yesterday that, in a circular sent out to all officers last April, officers were warned that the abuse could lead to disciplinary action.

The Sunday Times reported in November that one in three phone calls between January and June 2009 made to 112 remained unanswered. Although the police had blamed the poor response rate on blocked lines caused by prank callers or people who did not allow enough time for their calls to be answered, sources told The Times some calls were being made by policemen who used the free number to get through to the depot.

Mr Rizzo said there had been some cases and they had been stopped.

Asked whether disciplinary action had been taken against any officers caught using the number abusively, Mr Rizzo said there had been no more reports of officers calling emergency numbers since the circular was issued in April.

Moreover, those operating the emergency line 112 were ordered to hang up on any non-genuine calls and even report them to their superiors, he said, during a press conference held to mark European 112 Day yesterday.

The emergency number 112 receives almost half a million calls every six months.

According to Justice and Home Affairs Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici, the percentage of unanswered calls - which amounted to a staggering 45.75 per cent of all those received between July and December 2007 - were cut to just over 22 per cent in the second half of last year.

"We need to continue doing our best to reduce the number of calls that are unanswered," he said, adding that it was of concern if one genuine caller did not manage to get through.

Mr Rizzo echoed these thoughts, urging those planning of making a prank call to stop and think about the consequences if a genuine call could not get through because of them. "It could be someone from their family who needs help," he said.

He also warned that it was a crime to make a prank call and some people had been charged and jailed.

Dr Mifsud Bonnici said the emergency line, manned by six officers, should only be used in case of serious traffic accidents, fires or break-ins.

Mr Rizzo said the number of lines was recently increased to six and the system was able to divert calls to the Civil Protection Department, hospital and even the armed forces in case of a backlog.

He said plans were in hand to introduce another emergency number - 116 - to be used in cases of missing children or child abductions. Another number - 119 - is used by people who want to give information about crimes.

He said it was also possible to send a report by text message on 7977 7119, a service introduced last year especially for victims of domestic violence who might not be able to make a phone call.

"We also want to introduce an online system for such reports," Mr Rizzo said.

The EU introduced 112 as the emergency number in all its member states last year.