KEIGHLEY’s general election front runners have pledged to fight tooth and nail to save the town's police station.

Conservative and Labour candidates both went on the record this week during interviews with the Keighley News to promise they will campaign against the proposed closure if elected on May 7.

Labour hopeful John Grogan said he would do “all in his power” to stop it shutting, while Tory Kris Hopkins, MP for the past five years, said he would “fight with everything I have” to ensure the station remains open.

The future of the police station in Royd Ings Avenue – opened in 2005 at a cost of £4 million following the closure of the former base in North Street – is under review as the Force seeks to make swingeing cuts.

And both election candidates also promised to do their utmost to stop other services leaching from the town.

Their stance comes after several years in which Keighley has lost an ever-increasing number of frontline facilities, including the magistrates' courts, police cells, tax office and planning office.

Airedale Hospital recently lost its dementia ward, and the future of its service for 999 stroke patients is in doubt.

In the past two years alone, fire engines have been removed from Keighley and Haworth stations, the town's team of CID detectives has been moved to Bradford and the main post office now shares premises with WH Smith.

Conservative candidate Kris Hopkins said: “I will seek to convince Labour’s West Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner of the absolute necessity of the town retaining its police station.

“Police officers in Keighley need to be properly supported, and moving police resources to Bradford would be disastrous for our town.”

Mr Hopkins argued he had worked hard during the past term in office to win new investment for Keighley, such as Airedale Hospital’s £6.3 million Accident and Emergency Unit, the planned £16 million rebuild of Oakbank School and upcoming improvements to Hard Ings Road.

He added: “I will continue to do all I can to guarantee Keighley residents receive their fair share of public money."

“I will also keep a sharp focus on Labour-led Bradford Council, which continues to redirect resources and frontline services away from Keighley and into Labour inner-city wards.”

Labour candidate, John Grogan, said that if elected he will do all in his power to stop the closure of Keighley Police Station.

He added: “I will seek early meetings with the West Yorkshire Police Commissioner and the chief clinical officer of the Airedale, Wharfedale and Craven Clinical Commissioning Group to discuss the threat to the police station and stroke unit respectively."

Mr Grogan said one of the major themes of his maiden speech in Parliament would be the threat to public services across the Keighley constituency.

He added: “I will call an urgent meeting inviting all district, town and parish councillors from Keighley and the neighbouring villages to work out a plan of action to defend our services.

"I will want to work with public representatives of all parties as well as independents and representatives of local business.

“I will be pressing for a much fairer funding settlement to Bradford Council in future years and stop the recent bias in favour of richer southern councils."

Five candidates are fighting to become the MP for the Keighley and Ilkley constituency, including Gareth Epps (Liberal Democrat), Paul Latham (UKIP) and Ros Brown (Green Party).