Policing Keighley’s latest English Defence League rally cost the taxpayer a massive £207,041, it has been revealed.

More than 550 officers were drafted in as part of the huge operation in September, to marshal just 70 demonstrators and a further 90 people forming a counter-protest - meaning the operation cost nearly £3,000 for every EDL member who turned up.

More than a quarter of those were deployed from forces as far afield as Wales and Northumbria.

Figures, obtained through a Freedom of Information request, have sparked an urgent call among senior politicians for a rethink on who foots the bill for such events.

A police spokesman said: “There were 414 West Yorkshire Police officers and 150 mutual aid officers deployed on the day in and around the Bradford area.

“There were approximately 278 of those officers at the peak of the protest, who were on the protest and counter protest sites along with specialist resources.”

Among the UK police forces which supplied “mutual aid” personnel on the day were Cleveland, 25 police officers, Derbyshire, eight officers, Durham, 25 officers, Humberside, eight officers, Merseyside, eight officers, Northumbria, 25 officers, North Wales, nine officers, North Yorkshire, 15 officers, and South Yorkshire, 27 officers.

West Yorkshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Mark Burns-Williamson, responded: “Clearly in my view this would be money much better spent on other aspects of policing, including within our neighbourhoods.

“I’ve personally lobbied Government following similar EDL gatherings in Bradford and elsewhere regarding potential changes to the rules around these types of disruptive ‘demos’ and the wider economic and community impact on towns and cities like Keighley and Bradford.

“The police always need to plan around the potential threat, harm and risk to our communities and keeping them safe, while allowing legitimate protest within the law.

“However, Government has not properly addressed this, despite repeated calls to review current arrangements, particularly around disruption to people and businesses going about their normal activities on busy shopping days on a Saturday, or adequately compensating police forces.

“This does need looking at as a matter of urgency, at a time when police forces are constantly having to make difficult decisions around funding and how to make the best use of ever stretched resources.”

Keighley MP John Grogan said: “Powers already exist to ban demonstrations where there is a serious risk of disorder, but in a democracy these have to be used sparingly.

“I think there is a case for the costs of policing such events, which involve a large number of police forces, to be met at least in part by the Home Office.”

About 70 EDL protestors took part in the rally in Keighley’s Church Green, with roughly 90 counter protestors rallying at two different locations in the town centre.

The event mostly passed off peacefully, with police arresting four EDL supporters for minor public order offences.

Keighley Central ward councillor Zafar Ali said he agreed that policing the demonstrations that day had been a very expensive operation, but warned the police know they can't afford to be complacent.

"They had to have enough officers in place, because the consequences of not doing so could have been horrendous, as happened in Bradford in 2001," he said.

"Yes, we're concerned about the amount of money spent, but then again this is about our town's reputation and safety.

"I know members of our local business community were rightly worried about their properties being damaged.

"When there's any attempt to disrupt a peaceful community there will be a cost involved in confronting that."

Councillor Michael Westerman, chairman of Keighley Town Council's Watch and Transport Committee, said: "We shouldn't be talking in pounds and pence, we should be talking about public safety.

"If the police hadn't deployed all those officers and things had gone horribly wrong West Yorkshire Police and the police in general would have been bashed and told 'you didn't protect people'.

"I think £207,000 to protect the town was money well spent. You can't put a price on people's safety."