'Here for the sex games!' Magaluf is where Britons 'go mental and go home'

As the experiment of sending two UK police officers to deal with Britons on the holiday island of Majorca draws to a close, hedonism at the 24-hour party hotspot of Magaluf goes on.

The officers - sergeant Brett Williams and constable Martina Anderson from West Midlands Police - have been in the resort since Monday helping their Spanish counterparts deal with British tourists and providing a reassuring presence for holidaymakers.

But accusations that they have been working at the wrong time of day - shifts have finished at 10pm, long before the nightlife gets going - along with them being branded "bobbies on the beach" after they were spotted enjoying a dip in the sea have left some in the resort to dismiss the pilot trial as a joke and a waste of time.

Others have welcomed the familiar sight, saying they would be better at handling rowdy Britons than Spanish police.

While there has been a mixed response to the officers, holidaymakers and workers in the resort have overwhelmingly said that Magaluf does not deserve its reputation - with most declaring that it is no worse than a night out in the UK and is reforming its ways.

Statistics would seem to back the idea that trouble in Magaluf is exaggerated.

Between May and July this year there were just three arrests for prostitution, hawking, drug dealing and robbery in Magaluf compared to 23 last year, according to the Magaluf Hotel Association, figures it said are ratified by the Guardia Civil police.

New measures to crack down on anti-social behaviour have also limited bar crawls - which the MHA said has led to a fall in revenue for some pubs - and banned street drinking after 10pm.

Last night the hordes of youngsters on the Punta Ballena, Magaluf's main strip where bars and clubs fight for space with takeaways and tattoo parlours, appeared largely well-behaved.

While a handful had drinks on the streets and one or two were spotted urinating in the open - both banned under new regulations - the vast majority appeared to be the right side of sober as they wandered around and chatted in groups.

As he tried to entice people into the Capitol, a bar at the bottom of the Punta Ballena, Sean McCarthy defended what he said was an unfair image.

The 18-year-old from Hammersmith, west London, who lived in Majorca for four years as a child, said: "I think Magaluf is a brilliant place for a release. It is a little escape from the reality back home.

"Before I came out here I was told it was absolutely filthy. But all the people who work here are lovely. We are like a family, we look after each other."

Mr McCarthy spent 10 days in Magaluf last month before returning two days later to work as a rep, and said he did not see a single fight during his holiday. But he liked the idea of having British police in the resort.

"I'm a London boy, I love the British coppers. I think it is a good thing, personally - just not too many.

"If you have British police out here with British people nothing gets lost in translation.

"British police are a lot more lenient, very happy to stop things without violence. The British police are always very nice."

He said Magaluf was still the place for people to "go mental and go home".

"It is Magaluf, Shagaluf - people come here for the sex games. They have clamped down on that, but it is still a fantastic place to come and have a good time - everyone still loves it."