Gun crime in Lincolnshire has risen by 156 per cent over the past decade, according to the Tories.

The Conservatives have released figures showing that in nearly half of all forces in England and Wales offences involving dangerous firearms have doubled or worse since 1998.

The statistics show that in Lincolnshire there were 16 crimes involving firearms in 1998/9 compared to 41 in 2007/8.

Lancashire Constabulary saw the biggest single rise, with the number of offences increasing by 600 per cent.

But the Home Office said the claims were "misleading" because of changes in recording practices.

The figures, released to the Conservatives in Parliamentary answers, come after it was revealed the Metropolitan Police was deploying armed officers after a surge in gang violence.

But Lincolnshire Police spokesman Dick Holmes said the percentage increase is misleading as the force started from and finished at very low level of such crimes.

"That said, the situation does give us cause for concern as 16 offences in 1998/99 was too many and so was 41 in 2007/08," he said.

"We seek and act on intelligence which gives us information on the movement and sale of illegal firearms.

"We also target individuals who have a history of committing crime with guns."

The statistics show that every single region of England and Wales experienced an increase in gun crime between 1998/9 and 2007/8.

There were 9,865 offences recorded in 2007/8, up from 5,209 in 1998/9.

Shadow home secretary Chris Grayling said: "In areas dominated by gang culture, we're now seeing guns used to settle scores between rivals as well as turf wars between rival drug dealers.

"We need to redouble our efforts to deal with the challenge."

But a Home Office spokesman said there has actually been an 11 per cent fall in gun crime since 2005, while provisional figures for firearm offences recorded by the police show they account for 0.2 per cent of all recorded crime.