POLICE and the highways authority are investigating after an arson attack on a speed camera near Malvern at the weekend.

A call came into emergency services just after midnight on Sunday that the camera, on the A4103 Worcester-Hereford road, in the centre of Leigh Sinton, was ablaze.

Fire fighters rushed to the scene, and found a car tyre had been put around it and set alight. However the fire was soon extinguished.

Richard Fowler of the Safer Roads Partnership said: "It's very sad that equipment put there to reduce speeds should be subject to such a cynical disregard for road safety. One can only speculate whether it was someone with a general dislike of speed cameras, or someone trying to destroy evidence of a speeding offence."

He said the film in the camera had been recovered, was being developed and would be examined for evidence. It is too early to say how much repairs would cost, but it will be at least £1,500 and possibly in the tens of thousands.

But he added that drivers could not assume that they could speed with impunity through the village while the camera is out of action.

"The village will continue to be subjected to speed enforcement of one sort or another," he said.