Home Secretary John Reid must be made aware of problems faced by front line police, an MP has claimed.

Since Parliament broke for its summer recess Shipley MP Philip Davies has been working with West Yorkshire Police as part of the parliamentary police scheme which allows MPs to shadow their forces.

Now, as he approaches the end of his time with the boys in blue, the Conservative MP has decided to write a report, highlighting what he feels are the problems facing bobbies on the beat.

He said: "John Reid needs to know what challenges police are facing.

"It has certainly been an eye-opener and absolutely invaluable.

"I am extremely grateful to the police.

"Some of the things I have seen are almost - well, seeing is believing."

The quite lengthy' report will document alleged police frustration over bureaucracy, queues at the custody desk, high numbers of people being arrested after they have been bailed by the courts and frustrations over police time being wasted.

Today Mr Davies is helping to police Leeds United's football match against Birmingham City at Elland Road.

Chief Inspector Richard Whitehead said: "West Yorkshire Police are pleased to be able to assist Philip Davies in the Police Service Parliamentary Scheme.

"Mr Davies started with us on August 3 and will be spending time with us until the end of September.

"During his time he has visited various divisions and departments to get as broad a view as possible of the diverse work we carry out on a day-to-day basis."

As part of scheme MPs can volunteer to undertake police attachments in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and must complete at least 22 days of service.

The intention of the scheme is to provide MPs with a valuable insight into policing from the level of an Inspector who is seen as driving day-to-day policing.

The chairman of West Yorkshire Police Federation Tom McGhie said many of the issues raised by Mr Davies were "real" for police officers and caused "extreme frustration". He added: "When you have people that are bailed and then re-arrested and then bailed it has a knock-on effect of frustration that police officers feel.

"Bureaucracy is a big concern too. There is a lot of duplication of form filling and it takes time away from what the public want to see - which is more visible police on the streets."

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