The statistics, which cover officers in England and Wales shot while on duty, show the number rose from 12 in 2002/03 to 19 in 2006/07.

Shadow Home Office minister David Ruffley said the figures showed the Government was failing "to tackle the scourge of gun crime".

He said: "With the trade in illegal weapons soaring through porous borders, ministers are presiding over a service with falling number of armed officers. Now we see a rise in the number of police getting injured in the line of duty.

"This is yet another consequence of Labour's failure to tackle the scourge of gun crime and the causes of gun crime, like drugs.

"This failure is putting the public and our police officers at serious risk on an everyday basis."