Race watchdogs in Bradford have issued an urgent "wake up" call to major institutions across the city.

They want a concerted bid to find jobs for unemployed Asian youngsters to prevent a build-up of "dissent, dismay and alienation" among under-privileged inner-city communities.

The warning comes in the Bradford Racial Equality Council's annual report.

It includes new figures showing that by 2011, ethnic minorities will make up 20pc of the city's workforce.

"An increasingly high proportion of the future labour force will be from ethnic minority groups," the report states.

"The greatest increase - 5.5 per cent between 1996 and 2005 - will be from the Pakistani community. Over the same period the white labour force will decline by 7.3 per cent."

The REC is concerned about abnormally high levels of unemployment in the Toller, Little Horton, University and Bradford Moor areas of the city - areas with a high proportion of Asian young people.

"The disturbances of 1995 should act as an important lesson if we continue the present situation," the report continues.

"Employers in Bradford, especially the public sector, need to be fair in their employment practices and need to be seen to be fair. Institutions like local authorities, health authorities and the TEC need to spend limited resources not continuously trying to legitimise their own existence, but to develop realistic strategies."

Ishtiaq Ahmed, REC director, acknowledged it was a hard-hitting report likely to send waves around the city.

But he said it was time for "an honest, open debate" on the issue.

"As a city we are complacent," Mr Ahmed said. "The situation is coming to a crisis point. Our biggest concern is unemployment among the 18-25 age group, who feel cut out of the employment market.

"Every year more young Asians are joining the unemployment queue and you are building up reserves of dissent and alienation which cannot be good for our city."

He said employers needed to pay more attention to recruitment and selection policies. Bradford Council - one of the district's largest employers - had 9-10pc of ethnic minority employees on the payroll, which was a fairer proportion than most, but still did not accurately reflect the ethnic make up of the labour force, Mr Ahmed said.

Recent population statistics show the Bradford Met area is currently home to 486,444 residents of whom 97,158 are members of ethnic minority groups. Trends suggest that by 2011 the district will house 510,910, including 142,579 members of ethnic groups.

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