Gun crime in West Yorkshire is below the national average, official statistics have revealed.

Home Office figures showed there were 13 firearms offences per 100,000 of the population in the county during 2008/9.

Meanwhile, North Yorkshire recorded the lowest gun crime levels in the country, with 1.4 firearms offences per 100,000 of population – ten times lower than the national average.

Nationally, firearms offences fell by 18 per cent, from 17,343 to 14,250.

Sixty per cent of all gun crime occurred in three police force areas – the Met, West Midlands and Greater Manchester.

The figures show the number of armed incidents in West Yorkshire fell from 332 in 2007/8 to 287 in 2008/9.

There were only 11 firearms offences reported throughout North Yorkshire in 2008/9, a 35 per cent fall from the previous year when there were 17.

A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said: “Firearms can strike real fear into communities, so we are pleased that the number of offences involving firearms has fallen. However, one firearm on our streets will always be one too many.”

Michael Downes, chairman of the West Yorkshire Police Federation, said: “The only way to deter people from carrying firearms is to have minimum and adequate sentences in place for persons using them.”