Crime figures released today show that robbery in the Bradford district has rocketed by 89 per cent.

Home Office statistics show that in the Bradford South division robbery is up 90.7 per cent on last year, while in Keighley it has jumped a shocking 177 per cent. Bradford North figures are up 61.4 per cent.

Today's figures will make uncomfortable reading for politicians and police alike and while robberies only account for two per cent of all crime, Bradford's most senior police officer admitted it had been a 'difficult year' with countywide crime figures up overall by 15 per cent.

Assistant Chief Constable Greg Wilkinson said there had been an unprecedented demand on police resources, with up to 270 officers being diverted away from everyday front line duties to work on major incidents such as murders, shootings and the Bradford riots.

He also highlighted a 22 per cent surge in the number of 999 calls, taking the figure up to almost 1,500 every day.

But Chris Leslie, MP for Shipley, said he would be speaking to local police stations as a matter of urgency to find out what had caused the high figures for robbery.

He said: "What is important is trying to get to the root cause of this and not just leaving it to the police but working with organisations in the community and the Council to find out the sort of people committing these crimes and working hard to beat it."

Councillor Clive Richardson, who is also a member of West Yorkshire Police Authority, blamed the lack of police officers for the rising crime.

"It is a direct result of the failure of the Government to fund adequately the police service in West Yorkshire.

"This year the Police Authority increased their element of Council tax by almost 25 per cent. While many people attribute that increase to the cost of the Bradford riot, the bulk of that increase was to enable the Police to recruit more officers."

ACC Wilkinson blamed around three per cent of the jump on the introduction of the new National Crime Recording Standard which aims to provide victim-based statistics. He said it meant that any complaint of a crime was now officially recorded as an offence, even if there is no evidence to support this.

He said: "While the overall trend - nationally and locally - has been a rise in crime, it follows several years of falling crime. We also shouldn't ignore the successes we have had in what has been a difficult year.

"The most serious offences form a small proportion of overall crime but they are very resource intensive.

"For example, there was a problem with gun crime and associated drug trafficking which, while it involved a relatively small section of the population, caused great concern in the community."

The resulting operation saw 250 arrests, £1 million of drugs seized and 121 illegal immigrants deported, he said.

And ACC Wilkinson highlighted that the successful Leanne Tiernan murder investigation had cost £2.3 million and taken more than 10,000 police days.

He said: "West Yorkshire remains a safe place to live. With 124 violent crimes per 10,000 population, crimes of violence in the county are much lower than other metropolitan and many rural areas and significantly lower than the national average of 154."

Councillor John Ruding, chairman of the West Yorkshire Police Authority Audit and Performance Committee, said people should not be unduly alarmed by the figures.

"Crime has risen, but the rise has been exaggerated by the introduction of positive crime recording, under the new National Crime Recording Standard. West Yorkshire is still a relatively safe place to live and we are committed to ensuring it stays that way," he said.