A senior councillor's claims that Pudsey Police Station could be closed have been attacked as scaremongering.

Councillor Andrew Carter, Tory leader on Leeds City Council, has said he believes the station will be shut after a review of policing which is now taking place across Leeds.

But the claims have been dismissed by Labour councillors who called it "ridiculous".

Councillor Josie Jarosz (Lab, Pudsey South), said: "It all seems like a bit of pre-election scaremongering to me. It's a ridiculous idea. I definitely haven't heard any rumours that the station will be closed."

Pudsey Labour MP Paul Truswell has also accused Coun Carter of electioneering.

He said: "Before every single election Andrew Carter comes up with something like this. It's a ridiculous statement.

"I would be totally opposed to any proposals to reduce police coverage in Pudsey. I would be very critical if the review did not actually increase police coverage for the area."

Coun Carter said: "We know that a review into policing in Leeds is now going on. There is a strong suspicion that the current Superintendent will be the last Superintendent based at Pudsey and that resources will be transferred to Weetwood.

"This will be a further diminution of policing in Pudsey.

"My greatest concern is that this spells the beginning of the end for Pudsey Police Station.

"We will then have lost our magistrates courts, our fire station and our police station.

"I have no doubt I will be accused of scaremongering just as I was over the Magistrates Court and the fire station. This is not scaremongering - this is waking people up to the plans before it is too late."

But Chief Superintendent George Robinson, who is leading the review, said that no decisions about the future of policing in Leeds had yet been made.

He said: "This is not about cutting costs at the expense of a high-quality service.

"We want to ensure we are delivering the most efficient, effective and value-for-money policing possible."

A spokesman for Pudsey Police added that the turnover of senior officers at Pudsey police station in recent months had nothing to do with closing the station.

She said: "Movement of any officers or support staff is dictated by the force and a number of senior officers have moved to different positions within the force.

"It's a routine process and an essential part of career development and good management of the force and its resources."