A DUTY police officer who "almost immediately" called off a motorbike pursuit did not manage to stop a fatal crash, an inquest heard.

Motorcyclist Robert Shaw, pictured, of Driffield Close, Bentilee, died on June 21, 2005, after he was initially pursued for not having a tax disc.

The 25-year-old drove from Hanley towards Bucknall followed by PC Eric Moorfield and crashed his Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle outside the Co-op in Werrington Road.

A jury inquest into Mr Shaw's death started at Hanley Town Hall last Monday.

Yesterday the inquest heard how Sergeant Paul Goldstraw, duty officer on the day of the crash, had overall responsibility for whether the pursuit continued.

He received a message about the pursuit via a telephone call from the control room.

Jurors were told he called the chase off "within 30 seconds" of receiving the news, deciding they did not have the "tactical means" to stop the biker, but by this time Mr Shaw had crashed.

Sergeant Ian Revans, who is based at Longton Police Station and conducted an investigation into the accident, told the court he questioned Sergeant Goldstraw's decision.

Sergeant Revans said he had 25 years' experience with the traffic department and had also worked as a duty officer. He said: "If I had been the duty officer, I would have wanted to know more information before calling it off. Why were you pursuing the vehicle, what were the road conditions, what was the weather like, where was he going, what did we know about the biker?"

Sergeant Revans said, in his professional opinion, PC Moorfield had been acting responsibly in continuing to pursue Mr Shaw because he was waiting for information from the control room.

He said: "It was right based on the information he had at the time and the pursuit policy."

Barney Branston, representing Staffordshire Police, said: "Is (Sergeant Goldstraw) an example of someone who took a very quick and risk averse decision and did not ask the questions that you would like to see him ask?"

"Possibly," said Sergeant Revans.

Robert Shaw's father Ian asked Sergeant Revans whether Sergeant Goldstraw was using "common sense" in deciding not to pursue a motorcycle.

Sergeant Revans replied: "We can pursue motorcycles but we have no option to stop them except in exceptional circumstances."

Sergeant Paul Coggan, who is responsible for training police in pursuit policy, said there were different rules governing motorcycle and car pursuits.

Sergeant Coggan said officers were allowed to follow motorcyclists and report on their progress. He said they could only try to stop motorcyclists in serious circumstances.

The inquest continues.