Bosses have pledged to hold a recruitment drive to address low nursing levels in Bradford hospitals.

The decision has been taken following a national survey which revealed there were 116 nurses per 100 beds in Bradford compared to 127 at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and 124 at Airedale NHS Trust.

A draft annual plan also pinpoints low ratios of staff to patients in general surgery, ear, nose and throat, orthopaedics and anaesthetics.

Corporate Affairs Director John Damman said there were two reasons for improving staff to patient ratios and that it was a matter for concern.

He said: "We know that we have had low staff levels for a long time and that's one reason why we are a cheap service provider, but we feel that if we are going to increase quality, we need to increase staff levels.

"In the NHS plan, there's also an expectation that there needs to be more nurses taking on the roles traditionally done by doctors.

"We can't do that without an increase in nursing staff because effectively we are asking them to do more."

He added that the extended role of nurses would hopefully attract people into the profession.

The trust's draft plans for this year also include bids for two nurse consultant posts in cardiology and care of the elderly.

Other priorities are coronary heart disease, such as developing angioplasty and heart surgery, cancer care and a £700,000 extension of the renal unit at St Luke's Hospital.

Royal College of Nursing regional officer Glenn Turp said they would obviously support moves to employ extra nurses, but added: "Our concern would be how they were going to fund it and taking a look at the national shortage of nurses.

"It would be interesting to see how they recruit them."