A POLICE officer will not face criminal charges after the deaths of a young brother and sister who were travelling in the back of a police car when it was involved in an accident, police said yesterday.

Neza, four, and two-year-old Claudette Price died after the police car they were in collided with a Renault Scenic people carrier, which had skidded across the road into their path on the A68 near Witton-le-Wear, County Durham, on Boxing Day. Neza's twin brother, Sid, and mother Shelleen were badly hurt in the crash.

PC Mark Austin, who suffered leg injuries, was taking the family to a women's refuge, following a domestic dispute at their travellers' caravan site near Bishop Auckland, when the accident happened.

Durham Police confirmed yesterday that no criminal proceedings were being taken against the officer, or the driver of the Renault, Aaron Robertson.

Mr Robertson was travelling with his wife, Joanne, an off-duty police officer, and their son Lewis, who was ten months old at the time of the crash.